• Friday, March 29, 2024
businessday logo

BusinessDay

FG calls for more research for Covid-19 cure as CBN supports efforts

Covid-19

The Federal Government has called on researchers in Nigeria and other African countries to increase the level of research efforts to find a cure for the dreaded Covid-19 pandemic, even as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had indicated interest to support research in the country.

Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and the chairman of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on the containment of the Coronavirus, Boss Mustapha, said this during the daily briefing of the task force in Abuja on Monday, stressing that research has been central to the mandate, thinking and planning of the PTF.

“As a measure of the importance attached to research and development of local capacity for finding a cure to the COVID-19, the Federal Ministry of Health held a virtual meeting with a number of researchers and scientists with claims to cure for COVID 19 and out of the numerous claimants, three were found to deserve further investigation and have been forwarded to the relevant authorities for appropriate review.

“Above all, more research to determine the underlying factors for the current trend in the pandemic in Africa is needed. In addition to pursuing this line of thought, the occurrences in Kano and some other cities have given us cause to launch our research initiatives using existing structures and systems in a manner that will build a legacy and also prepare Nigeria for any future pandemic,” he said.

He added that similar efforts are being made by the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology to subject a good number of locally manufactured COVID 19 equipment to verification and subsequent certification.

“A recent publication by WHO on risk modeling for 47 countries in the Africa Region predicts 82,000-190,000 deaths during the first year of the pandemic. However, African countries need to take measure to respond to this worst-case situation while also ensuring continuation of existing services would certainly stretch our already burdened health systems,” he said.

He noted however, that studies had shown that countries in Africa are so far experiencing a lower rate of transmission, fewer severe cases, and fewer deaths than had been predicted in previous estimates.

Mustapha said that countries in the region need to progressively increase their capacity to detect cases, not just to know the extent of the outbreak, but also to identify and initiate care for people most at risk.

He added that African countries also need to expand capacity to mitigate the implications of widespread community transmission of COVID-19.

He noted that the CBN had indicated the willingness to support research efforts. “This is therefore, a call on our researchers and scientists to take up the challenge,” he said.