Coronavirus will spread across all states in Nigeria, says NCDC

The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has predicted a nationwide spread of coronavirus in Nigeria.

Nigeria currently has 407 cases of coronavirus with 22 states including Abuja being affected. The NCDC, however, believes it is a matter of time before the virus spreads to other states.

“Now, COVID-19 is on a much larger scale – at the moment in 22 states but it will grow to every state in Nigeria, there is no reason why it won’t – it is a respiratory virus,” NCDC director-general Chikwe Ihekweazu said on a Channels Television programme Sunrise Daily.

With 128 persons discharged after full recovery from the disease and 12 deaths recorded, Ihekweazu believes Nigeria has done well in containing the latest global pandemic similarly to Lassa Fever.

“We have responded to Lassa smoothly and nobody shut down the country because it wasn’t necessary, the response was fairly efficient,” Ihekweazu said.

He said the centre has already expanded its facilities nationwide for testing and treating of patients.

“We just activated the lab in Kano a few days ago. So, these are the results of the increased testing capacity that we are providing for the country.”

He believes the tests that the centre in collaboration with state governments has done in the country are fairly robust but can be improved upon.

Ihekweazu explained that state governments have been the first responders to suspected and actual cases of coronavirus since its outbreak in Nigeria.

He, however, advised Nigerians to keep following the guidelines and hygiene rules to contain the disease.

“It will circulate in Nigeria, absolutely no doubt and our responsibility as a country is to prepare more, to be able to detect, isolate, treat, list contacts, and stop transmission,” Ihekweazu said.

He assured Nigerians that the NCDC “will continue to be transparent with its operations and emphasised that the virus “will circulate in Nigeria, absolutely no doubt.”