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Ngige Confronts JOHESU Leader over Media Reports

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By Modupe Gbadeyanka

Minister of Labour and Employment, Mr Chris Ngige, has expressed shock over media reports credited to the National Chairman of the National Association of Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU), Comrade Biobeleye Joy Josiah, that the Federal Government should be blamed for the union’s on-going strike, accusing the Labour Minister of travelling the day he was supposed to meet with the union.

Mr Ngige, while speaking on Tuesday at the conciliation meeting with JOHESU, which also had the Minister of Health, Prof Isaac Adewole, as well as relevant government agencies in attendance, confronted Comrade Biobeleye over the alleged false media report.

The former Governor of Anambra State noted that as a Minister, he was fully aware of the sanctity of his responsibilities as a servant and argued it was wrong for a servant to be maligned or brutalized for no just cause.

“We are Ministers, we are servants and we are serving you. How can you can you vilify your servant, or start beating him or killing him when there is no offense? No, you can’t-do so. You can’t brutalize me in the media for nothing. Even these ministers here, you can’t brutalize them because they are serving the nation. It is not in the best of fair labour practices. It is unconscionable,” Labour Minister said.

“So, I take your explanations and it is good you explained because the impression you gave in the media is grossly erroneous.

“We invited you to a meeting on Thursday, September 21, 2017, your union failed to turn up and later requested for Friday, September 22, 2017.

“I already had an official engagement at Owerri and the Health Minister also was also involved in a different function,” he added.

Mr Ngige further said that freedom of association and speech should be carefully exercised to avoiding hurting the rights of others.

“Trade unionism, yes, but it has a boundary. Freedom of association and freedom of speech are constitutionally agreed.

They have a limit. You can’t use yours to hurt mine, slandering or libelling anybody can have consequences” he cautioned.

He also pressed for what he called permanent structures for peace in industrial trade unionism through selfless assessment of the extant economic situation in the country through social dialogue and constant negotiation so as to forestall perennial strikes.

“We all know the economy is not in good shape. If there were promises made when oil was selling at 150 dollars per barrel and those promises were not kept, it will not be very reasonable to expect a government that came in while oil is selling at 40 or 50 dollars to pay backlogs. But that is what we are suffering here.

“So, I made it clear to the Resident Doctors, university teachers and am making it clear here. We all have to make sacrifices to make Nigeria great,” Mr Ngige said.

Modupe Gbadeyanka is a fast-rising journalist with Business Post Nigeria. Her passion for journalism is amazing. She is willing to learn more with a view to becoming one of the best pen-pushers in Nigeria. Her role models are the duo of CNN's Richard Quest and Christiane Amanpour.

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Nigeria Tightens Surveillance at Entry Point Amid Fresh Ebola Outbreak

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By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigeria has tightened surveillance measures at entry points in the country owing to a fresh outbreak of Ebola disease in Uganda.

Last week, the Ugandan Ministry of Health confirmed the outbreak of the disease with one death and has now followed up with forty-four contacts.

With the latest development, the Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Mr Jide Idris, in an advisory said although Nigeria has not recorded any outbreak of the disease, it is putting in place preventive measures.

“There are no cases of Ebola virus disease in Nigeria. However, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), in collaboration with relevant Ministries, Departments, Agencies, and Partners through the National Emerging Viral Hemorrhagic Diseases (EVHD) Technical Working Group, continues to monitor disease occurrence and has initiated measures to strengthen our preparedness in the country.

“These include the update of our EVD emergency contingency plan, heightened surveillance especially at the points of entry, and optimizing diagnostic capacity for EVD testing in designated laboratories in cities with international airports of entry and the National Reference Laboratory. In addition, all Lassa Fever testing laboratories can be activated to scale up testing if the need arises.”

According to the NCDC DG, there are no Ebola vaccines in Nigeria at the moment.

“There are vaccines and therapeutics available for some strains of the Ebola virus. The approved vaccine for the Zaire species (EBV) is not currently available in the country but can be obtained from the WHO Afro and does not protect against the Sudan virus,” he said.

However, the NCDC boss said, “Early recognition, isolation of patients, and initiation of supportive treatment, implementing infection and control measures in health facilities and homes, tracing and monitoring of contacts, and safe burial practices, significantly reduce morbidity and the probability of death.”

Ebola disease is a severe, and often fatal disease caused by the Ebola virus. It is transmitted to humans via contact with wild animals and spreads through human-to-human transmission via direct contact with bodily fluids of infected individuals or contaminated surfaces.

Symptoms may include fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, vomiting, diarrhoea, internal and external bleeding. It may appear 2 to 21 days after infection. Medical expertise are advised by the NCDC, in regard to this disease.

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i3 Shifts 3rd Cohorts Focus to Growth-Stage Healthtechs After Trump’s Orders

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By Adedapo Adesanya

Investing in Innovation Africa (i3), a pan-African initiative to support African health-tech startups to commercialise and scale their offerings has decided to make a pivotal change to its third cohort selection to prioritise the immediate support for 5-7 growth-stage companies building the future of pharmacy care in Africa.

This comes after the US State Department’s “stop-work” directive for foreign aid issued on January 25, which is anticipated to impact the distribution of essential medicine in Africa’s healthcare supply chains.

President Donald Trump issued the executive order freezing US foreign development assistance for 90 days upon assuming office.

One of the affected by the order is the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which offers humanitarian and development assistance to other countries, primarily by giving fundings to non-governmental organisations, governments, and others. USAID is crucial in combating HIV/AIDS and other health matters.

According to a statement shared with Business Post on Monday, i3 says the order highlights and intensifies the need for locally-driven, market-creating approaches to health product distribution and service delivery across Africa.

So now the programme funded by the Gates Foundation, MSD, Cencora, Endless Foundation, HELP Logistics (a subsidiary of the Kühne Foundation), Sanofi’s Global Health Unit and Chemonics, will concentrate its immediate efforts on helping innovative growth-stage startups unlock major partnerships to rapidly expand access to patient care.

Fifteen leading startups will be selected for this cohort including 10 early-stage startups innovating in healthcare delivery or product distribution and five growth-stage startups building the future of pharmacy care.

Early-stage startups will receive a $50,000 grant and growth-stage startups will receive a $225,000 grant to unlock major partnerships that can expand patient access across the continent.

For startups in the cohort,  i3 aims to facilitate at least 150 relationships with key healthcare organizations, worth at least $30M,  which will expand patient access while creating valuable local jobs.

Entries for the 3rd cohort are open until February 28 after which the selected startups will be announced on April 30.

Launched in 2022, i3 has empowered 60 African health innovators across 16  countries, exceeding expectations with 43 per cent women-led and 20 per cent Francophone-led ventures.

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Augusta Ikpea-Enaholo Heads Edo State Health Insurance Commission

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Augusta Ikpea-Enaholo

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

The Edo State Health Insurance Commission (EDHIC) has a new Director General and is a dynamic and results-driven leader, Ms Augusta Ikpea-Enaholo,

With a vision for transformative healthcare and a deep sense of duty to Edo residents, Ms Ikpea-Enaholo is expected to lead the organisation into a new era of innovation and impact.

Her leadership is anticipated to not only strengthen the commission’s role in the state but also serve as a model for healthcare reform across Nigeria.

Before joining EDHIC, the new DG has built an outstanding career in maritime law, corporate governance, and legal advisory.

She has held key positions including Principal Legal Officer at the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Executive Director at Lee Engineering and Construction, and CEO of Royal Oaks Events Limited. She also served as Lead Managing Partner at August Jury and a Board Member at Davex Limited.

With an academic foundation in law, she holds an LLB from the University of Kent, an LLM from the University of Bristol, and a Doctorate in Maritime Law from the International Maritime Law Institute in Malta.

Ms Ikpea-Enaholo is a distinguished expert in corporate governance, contract negotiation, dispute resolution, and organizational leadership.

She is a member of the Nigerian Bar Association, International Bar Association, and Nigerian Maritime Lawyers Association, and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers, London.

Her transition to healthcare administration reflects her deep commitment to public service and health equity.

As the DG of EDHIC, she will prioritize transparency, innovation, as well as foster a culture of accountability and continuous improvement to position Edo State as a leader in sustainable healthcare delivery.

She brings a wealth of experience spanning law, public administration, healthcare reform, and corporate governance. Her leadership will be instrumental in driving EDHIC’s mission to make quality healthcare accessible and affordable for all, especially vulnerable populations.

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