The Federal Government has called on Governors of states affected by diphtheria to institute face covering requirements such as face masks in public gatherings.
This is even as the government said there have been 13,204 reported suspected cases, out of which 8,406 were confirmed cases from 114 Local Government Areas in 18 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
A breakdown by states showed that Kano has 86 per cent of the disease burden with 7,188 cases; Yobe – 775; Katsina – 232; Borno – 118; Jigawa -23; Bauchi -20; Kaduna – 17; Lagos – 8; FCT – 6; Gombe – 5; Osun – 3; Sokoto – 3; Niger – 2; Cross River – 1; Enugu – 1; Imo – 1; Nasarawa – 1; Zamfara – 1; Kebbi -1.
Of the 8,406 confirmed cases, 6,202 (73.7 per cent) were aged 1-14 years.
Speaking at a briefing in Abuja on the update of diphtheria, the Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Primary Health Care Agency, Dr Faisal Shuaib said diphtheria is an airborne disease.
“Like COVID-19, we can reduce air contact with the bacteria by adopting non pharmaceutical intervention such as the use of face masks, hand washing and physical distancing from affected persons.
“However, this should be done in a way that does not stigmatize nor discriminate against sick people. Accordingly, I would like to call on Governors of affected states to institute face covering requirements such as face masks in public gatherings. By so doing, we can add another intervention to slow the progress of the outbreak,” he said.
He noted that routine vaccination continues daily at all government facilities across the nation and the reactive vaccination exercises just serves as an additional layer of effort.
“Vaccination is not merely about administering shots and needles; it is about building trust and fostering community engagement. We acknowledge that our vaccination success hinges on the active participation and trust of our communities. Our dedicated teams have been on the ground, tirelessly engaging communities, answering questions and addressing concerns.
“We have undertaken a comprehensive approach that includes disseminating public health advisories through media engagement and webinars, developing and distributing Diphtheria Social and Behaviour Change materials, coordinating stakeholders’ meetings for risk communication and community engagement.
“Our tireless teams continue to conduct sensitization campaigns targeting health workers, opinion leaders, traditional and religious leaders, schools and community members. We are excited about the collaboration that the media has provided in order to increase awareness on the outbreak and encourage Nigerians to seek the protection of the vaccines.
“While we are firmly focused on controlling the Diphtheria outbreak, our vision extends beyond the immediate crisis. We are committed to strengthening our healthcare systems, ensuring the consistent availability of vaccines, and enhancing our capacity to respond to future outbreaks.
“The Federal Government continues to collaborate with Gavi, the vaccine alliance and our development partners as efforts are in full swing to expedite the procurement and delivery of more vaccines to combat this outbreak,” Faisal said.
On his part, the Director General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, Dr Ifedayo Adetifa said the government is finalising the development of the National Diphtheria Laboratory to conduct preliminary and confirmatory testings of the disease in the country.
Dr Adetifa noted that the Federal Ministry of Health through the NCDC and National Primary Health Care Development Agency, and partners has continued to work with the Ministry of Health of affected states to respond to diphtheria outbreaks across different states in the country.
“Last week the national diphtheria task force deployed National Rapid Response Teams to Kano, Yobe, Katsina, Bauchi, Borno, Kaduna, Jigawa and Zamfara to support the outbreak response in the State across all pillars.
“I also want to use this opportunity to thank our partners at the World Bank, the World Health Organisation, the United Nations Children’s Fund, Médecins Sans Frontières, GAVI, and Breakthrough Action Nigeria, among others for their continued support of the national response”, he added.
Adetifa said the recently deployed NRRT is offering on-site surveillance and response support to affected States in areas of active case search in communities and health facilities.
He, however, noted that security challenges are limiting the accessibility of some teams to some locations in affected LGAs across states.
“Through the laboratory network, we continue to conduct preliminary and confirmatory testing at sub-national and national levels respectively. Currently, we have 14 laboratories in the Diphtheria Laboratory Network with capacity to support diphtheria testing. Optimisation of five additional laboratories at the sub-national is currently ongoing.
“We have conducted training for laboratory personnel at the sub-national level on laboratory diagnostic processes, quality assurance, bio-safety and bio-security procedures, and data management. With the support of our partners including UKHSA, WHO and MSF we have been able to conduct refresher training for the deployed National Rapid Response Team laboratory personnel.
“Currently, there is an ongoing installation of laboratory equipment (bio-safety cabinets, autoclaves, and incubators) in Kaduna, Katsina and Bauchi states to aid the optimisation of labs in the states.
“There is also continuous provision of technical support to public health laboratory scientists across States. We are currently finalising the development of the National Diphtheria Laboratory,” he said.
