Covid-19 Lessons to be Used in Tackling Life-Threatening Diseases – Stakeholders
Commissioners of health and executive secretaries of states primary health care development agencies of 19 northern states have met in Abuja to compare notes and relive experiences gotten during the COVID-19 pandemic in tackling other health-threatening diseases.
The Executive Director, Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD), Engr. Yunusa Zakari Yau speaking at the two-day conference on Tuesday in Abuja said that though COVID-19 discourse has taken the backstage in the media, it is still here with us and the lessons should be implemented in tackling other diseases.
He said: “This conference of commissioners of health and executive secretaries of states primary health care development agencies of 19 northern states is meant to serve as a symposium, where states’ experiences of COVID-19 vaccination exercise will be deliberated, with a view to coming up with a learning model for future health emergencies.
“Our hope is that we can listen to ideas and progresses made, specific suggestions we think should be replicated or applied to specific nations. It is our hope that COVID-19 is gone, but in the past few months, we have seen the outbreak of monkey pox and other diseases. How are we prepared to deal with these emergences that will come in the future?
Read Also:
Read Also: UDUS, Nigerian Research Institutes Develop Indigenous COVID-19 Vaccine
“Our hope is that members here will share ideas and innovations they have developed, original ideas that will not be copyrighted, so that the person from Sokoto will learn from the person from Kwara, etc.”
On his part, Sokoto Commissioner for Health, Abubakar Lema Muhammed, said that COVID-19 experience shocked the world, but that it was combatted with modern technology.
“The COVID-19 pandemic experience shocked the world. We taught everyone will die because of alarming prophesies. However, with the modern technology we have, the disease was tackled within a short period of time. I urge us to work together in exchanging ideas and I commend CITAD for organising this conference,” he said.
Also speaking, Taraba Commissioner for Health, Dr. Innocent Vakkai, who was represented by Dr Abe Agbu, said that other diseases are still looming in Nigeria, hence the need to compare notes.
“It will be good if can share experiences of what we are doing at different corners to mop up the diseases, there are still viruses coming, so we need to know what we are doing to tackle them. I challenge us to know what we are doing here to help one another,” he said.
