NCDC kicks off Environment Surveillance Pilot activities in Cross River State
In a bid to create a safe and conducive environment for residents, the Cross River State Government has expressed its readiness to booster the State’s environmental sanitation in the fight against the spread of disease.
The Commissioner for Environment Hon. Moses Osogi speaking while receiving in audience a delegate from Nigeria Centre for Disease Control in his office in Calabar on Tuesday stated that the State is putting up adequate measures to tackle environmental issues and will not relent in ensuring that the State is safe for residents.
He noted that extreme behavioral pattern among residents has posed severe threat to the sanitation effort of government and pledged to continue the sensitization effort till the people’s confidence is earned.
As a testament of the positive stride achieved by the State in sanitation, Osogi said he has received several appraisals from other states who want to replicate the sanitation initiative, describing the gesture as a testament to the State’s legacies.
Osogi acknowledged that an outbreak of diseases is often as a result of human activities, hence the need to find appropriate means of regulating the activities of inhabitants in the environment.
Earlier, the Consultant for Nigeria Disease and Control Centre, Prof. Kolawale. O.M informed the gathering that the body was working assiduously in enhancing and improving on the sanitary condition of Nigeria.
He stated that NCDC’s Environmental Surveillance project is a disease detection project which has been in existence for a long time but has broadened to detect outbreak prone pathogens, monitor endemic disease patterns and also clinical surveillance through informed vaccination strategies.
He disclosed that Cross River State was the only State chosen out of the Six states in South- South Geopolitical zone for the Programme due to the notable systematic monitoring of environmental activities especially the monthly statewide environmental sanitation exercise, explaining that states which are to benefit from the project are the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, are Lagos, Kano, Borno and Abia.
It is anticipated that the 3-year project which is sponsored by the Federal Government and World Health Organization to build a surveillance system for NCDC will prevent future pandemics, strengthen environmental sanitation, preservation and other conservation activities accompanying reduction of outbreak of diseases such as malaria, cholera and Mpox.
By: Archibong Emmanuel
(Snr. Reporter)