By Justina Auta

A coalition of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) has called on the Federal Government to increase tax on sugary drinks to reduce the obesity crisis in the country

The coalition which made the call in a statement on Thursday in Abuja released in commemoration of the 2021 World Obesity Day, specifically asked for 20 per cent tax on sugary drinks.

They include African Youth Initiative on Population, Health and Development (AfrYPoD), Project Pink Blue and Association for Reproductive and Family Health (ARFH)

Others are Lafiya Wealth Initiative, Make Our Hospital Work Campaign, TalkHealth9ja, Breast Without Spot Initiative (BWS), HAPPY Nigeria, Nigerian Youth Union (NYU) and Gatefield Impact.

According to the statement, Nigeria ranks 4th highest soft drink consuming country globally, with over 40 million litres sold annually.

It added that consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), commonly known as soft drinks, contributed to a high rate of obesity.

“We, therefore, call on the Nigerian government to tackle obesity as an emergency health issue by taking the following measures towards the reduction of sugar content in soft drinks and other processed foods;

“We, therefore, call on the Nigerian government to introduce a specific excise duty of 20 per cent on SSBs such as soda and energy drinks.

“The government should use this tax to fund the prevention and treatment of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in Nigeria.’’ it said

The coalition also advised parents to desist from serving their children soft drinks with their meals and snacks, which puts them at risk of childhood obesity.

“About four million Nigerians are suffering from diabetes linked to excess sugar consumption. While many poor Nigerians can afford to buy soda, they cannot afford to treat diabetes, cancer, stroke and other NCDs,’’ it said.

The coalition called on the government to prevent sugar-sweetened beverage producers from advertising their products to children and ensure a mandatory warning label on the sugar level and health risk on the products label.

It further advised Nigerians to embrace healthy habits including physical exercise, drinking water and sleeping properly to reduce health risk.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that World Obesity Day is set aside to encourage practical solutions to help people achieve and maintain a healthy weight, undertake proper treatment, and reverse the obesity crisis.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) said obesity is major risk factor for non-communicable diseases like type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension and stroke and various forms of cancer.(NAN)

By Abujah Racheal

Deaths

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has recorded 16 additional COVID-19 related deaths, bringing the total  number of deaths from the disease since its outbreak in the country to 1,939.

The NCDC made the disclosure on its official Twitter handle late on Wednesday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Nigeria has so far recorded a total of 156, 963 confirmed cases of the disease, out of which 135,831 cases have been discharged across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The NCDC disclosed that the total number of active coronavirus cases was now standing at 19,212 after a decrease of 401 in the past 24 hours.

The agency also reported 464 new COVID-19 infections from 21 states and the FCT in the past 24 hours.

Lagos, Nigeria’s economic hub remains the epicentre of the virus, recording 131 of the 464 new cases.

Kaduna State followed with 69 cases, Akwa Ibom clinched the third position with 33 infections, Imo recorded 31 cases while Kastina State reported 30 cases.

Kano State recorded 26 cases, Ondo State followed with 23, Yobe 20, FCT 18, Ogun 13, Rivers 12 and Kebbi 11 cases.

Nine of the cases were recorded in Ekiti, six cases each in Osun and Oyo States, Borno, Gombe and Plateau recorded five cases each.

Similarly, Edo reported four cases, Abia and Delta had three cases each while Zamfara reported one case.

The public health agency also reported that Nigeria country recorded a total of 135,831 recoveries and discharges since the outbreak of the disease with 1,280 new discharges in the past 24 hours.

NCDC noted that its latest discharge, included 229 community recoveries in Lagos State, 144 in Imo and 45 in Akwa Ibom.

It added that three previously confirmed cases in Nasarawa State were omitted from the cumulative report.

The agency said that a multi-sectoral national Emergency Operations Centre, activated at Level 3, had continued to coordinate national response activities in the country.

By Rukayat Adeyemi

US Consul General, Claire Pierangelo, on Wednesday launched the COVID-19 messages of Hope intervention project in Nigeria in a bid to stop the spread of the disease.

Pierangelo launched the project in Lagos, in collaboration with Caritas Nigeria and other religious and community leaders.

She said the project presents a typical opportunity to accelerate the pandemic risk control through the influence of faith-based and community leaders.

“The influence of religious and community leaders throughout the country cannot be overstated and we need this to communicate and bring an end to the pandemic in Nigeria, ” she said.

According to her, the project is part of the US government’s support to Nigeria’s COVID-19 response.

She said that the US Centre for Diseases Control (CDC) had started engaging religious leaders throughout the country to disseminate contextualised messages that speak to the people .

Pierangelo said  that the messages would focus on the up-take of preventative, protective and behavior change which includes face masks, physical medication and most importantly vaccination .

“We could do all the prescribed medications, but until everyone is medically safe, we are not going to be successful in the fight against the virus.

“So, the messages of hope need to go within your communities and worship places to support the Nigeria’s COVID-19 eradication effort  which requires maximum support from everyone, ” she said.

The consul general said the US government recognises the spiritual role of the religious leaders and expects them to encourage people to be hopeful in the midst of the serious global pandemic .

Pierangelo said the spiritual guidance of faith leaders was critically important to solving the pandemic in Nigeria, as it is really difficult for people to self distance, not to gather or celebrate to events and successes of life together .

She said that the US CDC would continue to work with real important partners as the Nigeria Centre for Diseases Control (NCDC), the Catholic Caritas foundation, the Nigerian Interfaith Action Association (NIFAA) and the Presidential Task Force (PTF) to fight the pandemic.

Pierangelo said  that following the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic in Nigeria on Feb. 27, 2020, the US CDC has had important partnership and a close and productive relationship with Nigeria and its medical team over the past one year .

“In response to the Coronavirus, we conducted logical COVID-19 survey, we trained over 200,000 personnel, we installed technologies for virtual trainings, provided several equipment, among other control efforts, ” she said.

In her opening remarks, Dr Bolu Omotayo, Acting Country Director, CDC said the project is aimed at combining science and faith to fight the COVID-19 pandemic .

Omotayo urged Nigerians not to relax in adherence to the COVID-19 safety protocols as the virus was still very much actively around.

She said that a survey released by the NCDC last week indicated that in Lagos for example, one in five people have had or are having the COVID-19.

According to her, the outcome of the survey indicated that a high number of people, especially people in the younger generation categories, have had the virus but may not have shown symptoms .

“This made it clear that COVID-19 is real and is in our communities,” she said.

Omotayo called on the government to fast track more deliveries of the COVID-19 vaccines in batches following the arrival of the first tranche of the vaccine in the country on Tuesday.

“We expect that the vaccine would be rolled out and starting with the healthcare workers, then people who are over 50 years, and people with underlying ailments.

“It’s a step by step process and those who have registered have started getting text messages .

“The Nigerian government is making effort to ensure that all eligible people receive the vaccine.

“Though it may take a little while for the over 200 million Nigerians to be vaccinated, we all need to be patient for the processes,” she said.

Omotayo urged the faith and community  leaders to keep passing the message of preventive health measures to their followers, as the vaccines would take a while to go round.

She said that the success on the eradication of polio, ebola and prevention of HIV, among other diseases was achieved through the collaboration with religious leaders.

“We are excited that you would assist to pass the message to the grassroot and also that we will be able to monitor and evaluate it to generate and document data and numbers for our usage.

“In public health, there is social, economic, religious and all other aspects, and all the indices must work together for us to make a difference at reducing the pandemic in Nigeria ,” she said.

In his goodwill message, Dr Chike Ihekweazu, Director General, NCDC appreciated the US CDC for the project and thanked God for his mercies on Nigeria since the outbreak of the virus .

Ihekweazu, represented by Dr Chinwe Ochu of the Center, said the launch of the message of hope project by the US CDC marks yet another turning point in the fight against the Coronavirus in Nigeria .

He said the effort of the US buttressed the trust and reliability on religious leaders as platforms for engaging the people to drive the behavioural change required to end the pandemic in the country.

The NCDC DG urged the faith leaders to continue to pray for the country to win in its fight to overcome the virus, as it was still recording more cases and deaths.

“We hope you will leverage what the message of hope project has brought to streghten what you are already doing in fighting the pandemic in Nigeria.

“Particularly, as we prepare Nigerians for the COVID-19 vaccination intervention, we need you as trusted voices to help counter the numerous misinformation around this effective intervention.

“We will continue to make credible and evident based intervention on the pandemic available to our religious leaders who are critical stakkeholders in securing the lives of our people,” he said.

Ihekweazu commended the religious leaders on their roles played in the welfare and safe health of the people .

“We appreciate your effort towards the containment of the COVID-19 through your prayers , delivery of key messages , implementation of non-pharmacitical intervention in places of worship and the support provided to the people during the lockdown.

In his address of welcome, Rev. Fr. Uchechukwu Obodoechina, Executive Secretary /Chief Executive Officer, Caritas Nigeria, charged all faith leaders nationwide to become vanguards of the COVID-19 hope messages to curb the spread of the virus.

Obodoechina said he felt overwhelming for the CDC, Atlanta, to seek patnership with faith leaders in a bid to combine faith with science to fight the pandemic.

“It is an amazing experience for me to see how CDC Atlanta could jump from science to seek messages of hope.

“This is because disease control usually deals with drugs, medical experts, pharmacists and other health workers and usually has nothing to do with faith.

“But the components of messages of hope has come to do with faith and that is a combination of science and religion which is fascinating,” he said.

The Caritas scribe urged all religious leaders to always caution their followers to be precautious of the implication of COVID-19 as a public health hazard and employ means to avoid it by staying safe to remain alive.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Nigeria received its first batch of the COVID-19 vaccines with a total of 3.94 million doses on Tuesday in Abuja .

Following the development, the country became the third country in Africa to get the shots through COVAX, a global scheme formed to ensure fair access to inoculation for low- and middle-income states.

Other speakers at the launch, including Ustaz Abubakar Sadeeq, Representative of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs;  Rev. Joseph Daramola, Secretary General, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN); and Mr David Akoji of the National Orientation Agency called for equal and fair distribution of the vaccines.

Ministers of Health from Guinea – which is combating a new Ebola outbreak – and neighbouring countries have agreed on a unified front to combat the virus that re-emerged about three weeks ago.

A UN statement on Wednesday said this was at a meeting held in Guinea’s capital, Conakry, on 2 March.

Ministers and government representatives from Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Senegal and Sierra Leone attended the inter-ministerial meeting.

“If in 2014 Guinea and the neighbouring countries were victims of Ebola, this time around Guinea and the region are resolutely facing up to Ebola,” said the Guinean Prime Minister, Dr. Ibrahima Kassory Fofana.

The statement said the ministers agreed in a final declaration to set up a coordination mechanism, enhance cross-border collaboration, including working with communities, to support the efforts in containing the virus.

They also agreed to facilitate import regulations for vaccines and drugs as well as promote measures that were effective in bringing the 2014–2016 Ebola outbreak in West Africa under control.

Guinea declared an outbreak on 14 February after cases were confirmed positive for Ebola in a rural community in N’Zerekore prefecture, which lies near the border with Cote d’Ivoire and Liberia. As of 2 March, 17 cases (13 confirmed, 4 probable) had been reported.

“We are greatly encouraged by the common front taken by Guinea’s neighbours to tackle this outbreak. We know from experience how much this is critical in fighting Ebola,” said Dr. Abdou Salam Gueye, Regional Emergency Director at the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa.

“With close cross-border trade and social ties, we cannot ignore the importance of regional approaches against health crises.”

In support of Guinea’s health authorities, WHO and partner organizations have ramped up response to the outbreak.

Ebola vaccinations were launched just nine days after the outbreak was declared. To date, 1,317 people have been vaccinated and 32,000 vaccine doses have so far been delivered.

All the six countries bordering Guinea are stepping up readiness. Surveillance and screening are being stepped up at border crossing points and in high-risk communities.

Rapid response teams are being deployed to border areas to support preparedness plans of health districts.

Testing and treatment facilities are being scaled up and work to ensure communities take full ownership and rally around public health responses is underway.

By Justina Auta

The National Hospital Abuja, on Wednesday embarked on a free ear screening exercise to reduce the rate of hearing loss and other ear problems.

Speaking at the event, Dr Ikwu Owoicho, the Chief Consultant, Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) Department told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the exercise was in commemoration of this year’s World Hearing Day.

Owoicho, who is also a Head and Neck Surgeon, stressed the need for early diagnosis and appropriate treatment for patients suffering from hearing problems to regain hearing loss.

He attributed some of the causes of hearing problems to drug abuse, side effects of some medications and prolonged labour, among other factors.

“The inability to hear is acquired even from labour, if a pregnant woman goes through trauma during delivery.

“It can also be acquired in our environment through the usage of drugs, unnecessary drugs that are used that can affect the ears.

“Some treatments may also affect hearing, for instance, if you are using some drugs like chemotherapy drugs or radiotherapy drugs your hearing could somehow be affected,” he said.

He therefore, advised people to desist from self-medication and drug abuses, attend ante-natal and delivery at a medical facility under experienced hands during labour to forestall any hearing impairment.

According to him, we need to let people know that we can only use drugs that are necessary for use.

“The idea of going over-the-counter to buy drugs may affect hearing,” he warned.

The expert also advised parents to monitor their children from an early age in order to check any kind of defects or challenges they might have as well as seek medical attention immediately.

“For instance, if a new baby of one month is not reacting to the environment but is taken to the hospital for diagnosis and management, it can be corrected by medical or surgical needs.

“This will help the child to develop a normal hearing ability,” he said.

He called on the Governments to provide means to reduce cost of ear treatment and management such as cochlear implant which he noted would reduce the burden on people at the grassroots.

He explained that the screening exercise, radio talk and rally were part of the activities to create more awareness on ear diseases and hearing loss.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the World Health Organisation (WHO) had reported that about 2.5 billion people globally would live with some degree of hearing loss by 2050.

It further noted that at least 700 million of them would require access to ear and hearing care as well as other rehabilitation services.

Angola on Tuesday received 624,000 doses of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine from the Sérum Institute of India as part of the COVAX initiative, which aims to ensure the equitable distribution of vaccines against COVID-19 worldwide.

With this first batch of vaccines, estimated at about 10 per cent of the country’s first phase vaccine needs, the Government will immunize health professionals, vulnerable people and those with complicated comorbidities, a UN statement said.

According to WHO Regional Director, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, with the arrival of vaccines provided by the COVAX initiative to fight COVID-19 in Angola, the continent marks another important step towards fairer access to vaccines.

“With this shipment, the first Portuguese-speaking country in Africa accesses this essential tool in the fight against the virus.

“Each new vaccine delivery marks a breakthrough in the fight against this pandemic that has held our lives hostage for too long.

“WHO teams in the region and partners have been supporting countries in planning and preparing for the complex challenges of such a massive vaccination campaign.

“We now hope to see these plans be put in place with an effective and efficient release of the vaccine,” Dr. Moeti said.

Dr. Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, emphasised that “COVAX’s mission is to help end the acute phase of the pandemic as soon as possible, allowing global equitable access to vaccines against COVID-19”.

The COVAX initiative is playing a crucial role in global efforts to ensure fair, accessible and equitable access to vaccines against COVID-19 to the world’s poorest countries, the most marginalised communities and the most vulnerable populations.

WHO Representative in Angola, Dr. Djamila Cabral, said that “the delivery of vaccines to Angola represents the manifestation of international solidarity and a stronger hope to save lives, and to help economies and livelihoods recover more quickly”.

“The start of the vaccination campaign offers us a light at the end of the tunnel for the protection of populations and also, an appeal to continue to work together to strengthen prevention measures against COVID-19, in particular compliance with biosafety standards, screening, and treatment, as well as improving access to health services and quality.” (PANA/NAN)

The Federal Government has reiterated its commitment to ensure affordable healthcare services to all Nigerians, to achieve universal health coverage.

By Abujah Racheal

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has announced 479 new cases of Coronavirus (COVID-19), bringing the total number of infections in Nigeria to 156,496.

The NCDC disclosed the figure on its official Twitter handle on Tuesday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that since the outbreak of the disease in the country, the number of people who have contracted the virus has risen to 156,496, out of which 134,551 have recovered and discharged.

The health agency recorded additional eight COVID-19-related deaths in the past 24 hours, raising the total number of fatalities to 1,923 since Feb. 27, 2020 when the index case was reported.

The NCDC stated that the 479 new infections were reported across 21 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) which had 40.

Lagos State recorded 153 new cases but no death.

The NCDC stated that till date, 56,001 people have contracted COVID-19 in Lagos State,  53,805 of whom have fully recovered and discharged. It said 410 COVID-19 patients in the state had succumbed.

Other states which recorded new COVID-19 infections were Enugu-75; Rivers-50; Kaduna-18; Ebonyi-17; Plateau-17; Edo-17,’Borno-16 and Oyo-12.

Kano State reported 11; Abia-10; Cross River-10; Taraba-nine; Nasarawa-seven; Bauchi-four; Bayelsa-three; Delta-three; Ekiti-two; Niger-two;  Ogun-two and Akwa Ibom-one.

The NCDC said that 647 people have been discharged from the various isolation centres in the country, after testing negative to the virus.

The agency said that the number of active cases in the country have dropped to 19,613.

It noted that a multi-sectoral National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), activated at Level 3, had continued to coordinate the national response activities in the country.

Meanwhile, 368 days after it recorded its index case, Nigeria on Tuesday received 3.94 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines.

NCDC expressed the hope that the arrival of the vaccines would soon change the narrative.

“Together we shall win…  One step closer to ending this pandemic. No one is safe, if all of us are not safe,” the health agency said.