The recent outbreak of cerebro spinal meningitis would have been avoided if Nigeria was quick in responding to signals sent earlier by the neighbouring countries.
The Executive Director of National Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr Faisal Shu'aib made the observation at the two-day after-action review meeting organized by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control in Sokoto state.
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He said the country was notified by the Niger Republic about the outbreak of type 'C' meningitis but was not proactive in taking measures to prevent it as a result of which some states were affected with many lives lost. In his remarks, the National Coordinator of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu said no fewer than 14,518 cases and 1,166 death were recorded in the country.
According to him, 80 percent of the cases were recorded in Zamfara and Sokoto states. He commended the governments of the two states for their rapid response to the situation which he said curtailed the spread of the disease.
Ihekweazu added that over two million people were vaccinated in Zamfara, Sokoto and Yobe which were worst hit by the disease, blaming the number of casualty on late notification, lack of Rapid Response teams in states and inadequate fund among others.
"This meeting is aimed at reviewing the cases and our actions and we are hoping at the end a workable action plan will be adopted which we will begin to implement by August, this year. This is to ensure the outbreak never happened again," he said
Also speaking, the Sokoto state Commissioner of Health, Dr Shehu Kakale said they spent two million Naira daily on drugs and were able to treat 3000 patients during the outbreak which he said was more devastating than the weapon of mass destruction.
He called on the federal government to increase funding to the health sector, particularly to the centre.
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