The African Development Bank in Abuja on Tuesday announced a grant of $1 million to the Federal Government as support to the fight against Ebola Virus Disease in the country.
A ceremony to formalize the gesture was held at the Ministry of Finance headquarters where an agreement on the grant was signed between AfDB and the Federal Government.
The bank’s Country Representative in Nigeria, Dr. Ousmane Dore, and the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, signed the agreement.
Dore restated that the grant was in support of Nigeria’s efforts to contain the Ebola disease, saying that it was to strengthen measures already put in place by the government.
According to him, the grant was part of the $60 million given to West African countries by the bank to help them fight the disease and stressed that AfDB was working with Nigeria and other African countries to contain the disease.
In her remarks, Okonjo-Iweala said that the partnership between AfDB and Nigeria was to fight and eliminate the Ebola disease in the country.
She explained that the grant was in recognition of the efforts of the Federal Government and state governments in containing the virus.
She promised that the grant would be put to immediate use, adding that government had intervened in other West African countries where the disease was ravaging, with a support of $3.5 million.
On his part, the World Health Organisation Country Representative in Nigeria, Dr. Rui Vaz, said that the organisation would continue to provide further support to Nigeria on the disease.
Vaz commended the Federal Government for its efforts to check the spread of the virus.
Also speaking, Linus Awutie, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health, promised that the grant would be judiciously utilised.
Awutie said that 511 persons who had contacts with persons who had contracted the disease had been discharged after completing the mandatory 21 days treatment.
Awutie said that the Federal Government had concluded arrangement for the training of health workers to assist other West African countries in the fight against the disease.
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