• Thursday, March 28, 2024
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BusinessDay

Where is Nigeria on Covid-19 cure?

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As death rate in Nigeria continues to increase as a result of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, many citizens have wondered what the Federal Government is doing about developing a local remedy to tackle the virus.

But the Federal Government has said it was not sleeping on guard.

Some observers say that it beats the imagination that since February 27, 2020 when the first case of coronavirus was reported in the country, the number of citizens who have been tested for the virus is still a far cry from one million in a country with an estimated population of 200,000 million.

“My worry in all of this is that the numbers are spiking everyday and no effort is being made to stem the tide. Other countries are making efforts to find a cure for the virus and what we hear from our government is what has become a sermon on the mountain,” George Okhira, a public health worker, told BDSUNDAY.

Continuing, Okhira wondered that the task force is not telling Nigerians what their main problem is. “I personally do not think that their problem is money to sponsor research by scientists because nobody has told me what all the money given to the government by both local and foreign donors has been used to do,” he said.

Ndadilnasiya Wasiri, an epidemiologist, says government needs to do more. “There should be communication for education; government should engage the people through their local and church leaders. They listen to these people more, not those who talk to them on television,” she advised.

This communication gap is the reason many Nigerians do not know what has become of the herbal cure that the government took delivery of from the president of Madagascar who personally delivered the drugs to President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja.

In response to these concerns, the Federal Government has said it would identify few key local pharmaceutical companies that will be granted funding facilities to support the procurement of raw materials and equipment required to boost local drug production.

 

The government through the Central Bank of Nigeria also set aside the sum of N1trillion in loans to boost local manufacturing and production across critical sectors.

The early development of cure for the coronavirus disease is seen as necessary for citizens’ protection from the ravaging virus

A recent finding by Oxfam, indicates that many Nigerians may die daily by the end of 2020, unless a cure is found urgently.

According to Oxfam, “As many as 12,000 people could die per day by the end of the year as a result of hunger linked to COVID-19, potentially more could die from the disease”

For instance, government had set aside the sum of N44.5billion consisting of N381bn for recurrent expenditure and N59.9bn for capital expenditure in the 2020 budget before the advent of the pandemic.

But, in the revised budget, the basic healthcare care provision fund was cut by 43% from 44.5 billion to N25.6 billion. The budget for the procurement of outbreak (emergency) response vaccine, devices and operational cost is N1,028,363,525.

Maurice Iwu, a professor of Pharmacognosy, and chairman of the Imo State Taskforce on COVID-19, who spoke to BDSUNDAY on government efforts to develop local vaccines, said the Federal Government was collaborating with researchers to find local drugs.

“Efforts are being made by the Federal Government through various intervention funds to support local scientists,” he said.

These efforts, Iwu explained “will yield positive results with time.”

 

The Professor, who is also the Chief Officer (CEO) of Bioresources Development Group (BDG), however, sees lack of confidence in the locally produced drugs by Nigerian Scientists as a major factor militating against advancement.

Iwu had developed the IHP Detox tea, which is currently undergoing testing on the feasibility and acceptability of an emergency trial in the context of Covid-19 pandemic.

The testing is to satisfy its safety and effectiveness in reducing mortality and viral load in patients with the virus.

Federal Government in a recent development said the country developed and validated an indigenous RNA-Swift test kits for the identification of SAR-CoV-2, the causative agent for the Covid-19.

The Minister of Science and Technology, Ogbonnaya Onu said the RNA-Swift test kits have an amazing precision for the detection of the SAR-CoV-2.

He announced that consultations are on with the African Development Bank for the funding of the Africa-wide testing programme for Covid-19 and the establishment of the RNA-Swift production in Nigeria.

The test kits, he said, will be readily available at a price that places it ahead of competitors in terms of sensitivity and affordability.

“Five million farmers are expected to be tested with the kits, from the first 10million kits to be produced,” he said.

On partnership with local researchers, the independent researchers in Nigeria have publicly claimed to have developed a local solution to treat Covid-19, but said they have been repeatedly denied audience by the Federal Government.

But, late May, the Federal Ministry of Health finally held a virtual meeting with a number of these researchers. Only three were selected and sent to the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) for further investigation.

Patrick Dakum, CEO, Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN), noted that the discovery and availability of a vaccine for Covid-19 is only good for the future, but for Nigeria to be able to get the pandemic under control, finding and treating cases is key.

He said Nigeria must look inward for local solutions by funding its scientists and researchers in addition to international partnerships.

The risk communication officer at the NCDC, Emeka Oguanuo said the local drugs are still under scrutiny. He also said Nigeria is not just waiting until a vaccine is developed, but the country is part of the WHO global solidarity trials to test the efficacy of certain drugs to treat Covid-19.

 

The Madagascar remedy

Early this month, the Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, said the “so-called” Madagascar herb is grown in Nigeria. He said preliminary results of the analysis of the herbal cure found that it has the same as Artemisia annua, also known as ‘sweet annie’ which is grown in the NIPRID research farm in Abuja.

Ehanire said the Artemisia annua which is a component of malarial treatment medicine was imported by government some years back.

The minister said further research on the efficacy of the plant to treat COVID-19 will be conducted when a grant is approved.

Ehanire also said that the species of the plant available in the country had a very high concentration of Artemisinin, an active ingredient for anti-malaria.

According to him, NIPRID is trying to develop its own production of ACT and the process is still under supervision. The minister said the type in Nigeria showed that it has a very high concentration of Artemisia annua when tested, which is the active ingredient for anti-malaria.

 

Why process is taking a long time

The Director, Information, media and public relations Olujimi Oyetomi, Federal Ministry of Health, said one of major constraints stalling the development of local solutions to treat Covid-19 is the human trial stage. He recalled the three potential herbs, selected from 17 claimants are still undergoing investigation by the relevant agencies, NIPRD and NAFDAC, but said finding volunteers willing to sign an MoU not to institute any legal action if anything goes wrong, is a problem.

He noted that every acclaimed cure could be a potential poison and that is why the process is taking a long time to ensure that solutions are safe.

Oyetomi added that the Ministry of Health does not only want to develop a solution that is safe, but one that cures perfectly and not just some of the symptoms of COVID-19.

He said the Ministry is still expecting report from NIPRID on the three local herbs, adding that the only report received so far, is the one on Madagascar of which preliminary analysis shows that the basic ingredients in the solution is in Nigeria.

Oyetomi also said the Madagascar herb is not effective in treating Covid-19, hence government may no longer consider it.

“Madagascar has imposed a total lockdown due to resurgence in cases despite claiming that they have a cure”, he said.

Oyetomi further said funding is another constraint. He noted that no special fund was committed for research in local solutions for the treatment of Covid-19, apart from the yearly allocation given to the agencies.