Ebola: NCDC to pay contacts in isolation N100,000 weekly

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, NCDC, has approved an emergency payment of N100,000 per person, weekly, for individuals placed in isolation or quarantine as part of efforts to contain the Ebola outbreak in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.

The Director-General of the agency, Dr Jide Idris, disclosed this at a press briefing in Abuja on Sunday.

“We introduced the payment after some contacts raised concerns about feeding, accommodation and how to take care of their families while under monitoring. The support is to ease their financial burden and encourage them to cooperate with health officials,” Idris said.

The NCDC chief explained that the payment was not included in the initial response plan but became necessary because of the concerns raised by those affected.

“This was not planned for, but it is an emergency. We will continue to review it as we go along,” he said.

Idris also called on state governments to prepare financially and logistically for public health emergencies.

He stressed that the responsibility for containing outbreaks should not rest on the FCT alone.