Lagos State Government has placed the United States, Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, Togo, South Africa, Canada, France, Germany, Uganda, the Netherland, Cameroon, Angola and Rwanda on a watchlist as the state is working to prevent a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Commissioner for Health, Prof Akin Abayomi, disclosed this on Wednesday, at a briefing on the state’s COVID-19 update and preparation against third wave.
Abayomi said preventing the importation of COVID-19 mutants from other countries is the best way to prevent a third wave in Nigeria.
“We are preparing and building resistance, but if the third wave enters, the state would prevent it from going into the community,” he said.
According to him, aside from India, Brazil and Turkey which the Federal Government has announced banning travellers from these countries, Lagos State would be closely monitoring passengers from the 13 countries on the watchlist.
Abayomi also said the state has received new 57000 COVID-19 vaccine doses from the Federal Government, which it has started administering. The commissioner said with the new vaccine doses, 27000 additional residents would have the opportunity to receive vaccine outside those who have received earlier. The commissioner stated that if Lagos would witness a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, it would be from persons travelling into Nigeria from overseas.
“In Lagos, we have experienced the first and the second wave and we are looking at the factors that could possibly trigger the third wave,” the commissioner said.
Abayomi has identified laxity amongst citizens, false sense of security and non-adherence to guidelines as likely issues that could lead to third wave.
“Several countries are going through a second, third and even fourth wave and we are assuming that a majority of these waves are caused by a significant social activity and movement of people as well as the ability of the virus itself to change,” the commissioner said. He maintained that this is not a time to relax, but a time to step up activities and prevent scenarios that could trigger a third wave.
He said the prevention of the third wave of COVID-19 will be carried out along five pillars which he listed to continually test aggressively to detect for positive cases of COVID-19 and examine the variants.
He also mentioned the use Eko-Telemed to monitor confirmed cases, encouraging standard hygiene principles and social distancing as well as increase oxygen supply to manage the possible cases that might come in the third wave.
Abayomi added that efforts would be geared towards pharmaceutical intervention to increase vaccination.
He nonetheless advised citizens to respect COVID-19 rules and prevent scenarios that could lead to the spread of the virus.
Also speaking at the briefing, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Gbenga Omotoso said Governor Bababjide Sanwo-Olu has implored residents of the state not to panic but to keep to the protocols, especially non-pharmaceutical protocols.
