The Senate has urged the Federal Government to release emergency funds from the Service-Wide Vote to strengthen measures against the Ebola outbreak and prevent the disease from spreading to Nigeria.
The resolution followed deliberations on a motion sponsored by Senator Francis Ade Faduyile (APC, Ondo South) during Wednesday’s plenary. The motion called for mandatory health screening at Nigeria’s international airports, seaports and designated land borders in response to reports of an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its spread to other countries.
Faduyile urged the government to introduce compulsory health declaration forms, temperature checks and symptom screening for all international arrivals, regardless of their nationality or country of departure.
He also called for stricter checks on travellers who had visited or passed through affected areas within the previous 21 days, as well as exit screening during declared public health emergencies.
The senator stressed the need to equip entry points with trained port health officers, thermal scanners, protective equipment and isolation facilities. He further urged the government to ensure that isolation and treatment centres were ready across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
Faduyile also called for the modernisation of the Quarantine Act of 1926 and adequate funding for the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and Port Health Services.
Seconding the motion, Senator Ekong Sampson (APC, Akwa Ibom South) described Ebola as a serious public health threat, warning that a single case could trigger wider transmission if not detected and contained promptly.
Senator Adamu Aliero (APC, Kebbi Central) said Nigeria could not afford to wait for the 2027 budget to address the threat. He urged the Ministries of Finance and Budget and Economic Planning to release emergency funds through the Service-Wide Vote to enable relevant agencies to respond without delay.
The Senate adopted the motion and called for immediate funding to strengthen surveillance, screening and disease containment efforts.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio expressed concern over reports of a traveller entering Nigeria without adequate screening, questioning the effectiveness of existing checks at the country’s entry points.
Recalling Nigeria’s experience during the 2014 Ebola outbreak, Akpabio warned that failure to identify an infected traveller early could expose many people to the disease.
He urged comprehensive screening of all international arrivals, noting that travellers could enter Nigeria through third countries even if they had departed from places not directly affected by the outbreak.
Akpabio also asked the Senate Committee on Judiciary to engage relevant health authorities on an urgent review of the Quarantine Act.
The Senate urged Nigerians and relevant agencies to remain vigilant and support efforts to prevent Ebola from spreading into the country.
