The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has identified 53 primary contacts linked to a confirmed Ebola case in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), while introducing a ₦100,000 weekly allowance for people quarantined following possible exposure to the virus.
The financial support is intended to ease the burden on quarantined individuals who cannot attend to their businesses and family responsibilities during the monitoring period.
The NCDC Director-General, Jide Idris, disclosed the measures at a media briefing in Abuja on Sunday, according to BusinessDay.
He said 44 of the 53 contacts were identified at the health facility where the confirmed patient received treatment, while nine others were traced through separate interactions with the patient.
The additional contacts include the patient’s husband, driver and chef, three healthcare workers who attended to her at another clinic, and three members of the team that collected samples.
Idris explained that the agency had initially covered accommodation and meals for people staying in designated quarantine facilities but approved the additional allowance after some complained about the financial implications of their isolation.
“We are providing N100,000 per person per week just to maintain their comfort and feeding, because they were complaining,” he said.
The NCDC chief described the payment as an emergency intervention outside the agency’s original expenditure plan, noting that the arrangement would be reviewed as the public health response progresses.
He also stressed that state governments have responsibilities to provide funding, facilities and essential materials for managing people identified as contacts during infectious disease emergencies.
On diagnostic capacity, Idris said about 12 public and private laboratories were available to conduct Ebola tests, adding that the agency had strengthened laboratory capacity to facilitate prompt investigation and confirmation of suspected infections.
The NCDC is also maintaining heightened surveillance and contact tracing as authorities work to identify potentially exposed persons and prevent further transmission.
Ebola can spread through direct contact with the blood and other bodily fluids of an infected person, particularly after symptoms develop, making early detection, monitoring and strict infection-control measures essential to containing an outbreak.
The agency has urged public and private healthcare facilities across the country to strengthen patient screening, triage and infection prevention procedures.
The developments underscore the dual challenge facing health authorities: tracing and monitoring people potentially exposed to the virus while ensuring that quarantine does not impose unbearable financial hardship on those required to comply.
