Jumoke Olasunkanmi
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has debunked a recent news report which said 25 new COVID-19 cases were detected in Benue State.
According to a statement signed by NCDC’s Director General, Dr. Ifedayo Adetifa, on Thursday, the information is a misinterpretation of a statement made on December 11, 2023, by a World Health Organisation (WHO) State surveillance officer during a meeting organised by the Benue State Primary Healthcare Board, in collaboration with the WHO.
It noted that the surveillance officer’s statement conveyed that “Benue State had recorded a total of 25 cases in the year 2023 with the last case recorded as of mid-April (epi week 18).”
He added that this information was reportedly based on the publicly available situation report (SITREP) published weekly by the state Ministry of Health.
The statement further explained that since the confirmation of the index case of COVID-19 in Nigeria, the NCDC has done a total of 6,013,826 tests, recorded 267,184 confirmed cases and 3,155 deaths.
In addition, he stated that 15,481 tests and 75 confirmed cases were recorded in 25 states from October to December, 2023.
Adetifa added that COVID-19 is no longer a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC), as per WHO directive. Hence, it has been incorporated into the integrated disease surveillance strategy, making routine testing and reporting a piority alongside other infectious diseases.
He added that as part of clinical care for pandemic flu preparedness, COVID-19 testing now extends to testing during investigation for influenza, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and high-risk populations and has continued year long for patients presenting with Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) or Influenza-Like Illnesses (ILI).
The NCDC DG urged the media to ensure accurate disemination of information to prevent potential public health threats arising from misinformation.
