Reps Demand Urgent Funding for NCDC Over Ebola Threat, Epidemic Preparedness

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The House of Representatives has called on the Federal Government to immediately provide adequate funding to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to strengthen the country’s preparedness and response capacity for Ebola and other epidemic-prone diseases.

The resolution followed the adoption of a motion of urgent national importance sponsored by Amobi Ogah (LP, Abia), who warned that Nigeria’s disease surveillance and emergency response systems were under severe strain due to prolonged funding shortfalls at the NCDC.

Presenting the motion, Ogah reminded lawmakers that the NCDC is Nigeria’s national public health institute, charged with responding to infectious disease outbreaks and public health emergencies. He drew attention to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where authorities confirmed the emergence of the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus in May.

According to him, the outbreak poses a significant threat to Nigeria due to its porous borders and the ease of cross-border movement across Africa.

“On 15 May 2026, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention reported an outbreak of Ebola disease in the Ituri Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo. This rare and distinct strain of Ebola virus, the Bundibugyo strain, is causing a major public health emergency in Central Africa,” Ogah said.

The lawmaker expressed concern that, unlike some previous Ebola outbreaks, there are currently no licensed vaccines or targeted therapies specifically approved for the Bundibugyo strain.

Ogah noted that the NCDC received no operational funding in 2025 and that no capital releases had been made so far against its approved 2026 budget allocation. According to him, overhead releases to the agency have also been irregular and grossly inadequate.

“How then can the preparedness of the Centre for emergencies be guaranteed?” he asked.

The lawmaker outlined several challenges currently confronting the NCDC, including unpaid contractors and service providers, stalled strategic projects, inadequate laboratory supplies, weak biosafety infrastructure, and limited resources for emergency simulation exercises.

According to him, vendors supplying critical goods and services to the agency have not been paid for more than one year, leading to delays in the completion of zonal laboratories, treatment centres and isolation facilities across the country. He further disclosed that laboratory reagents, consumables and other materials essential for outbreak screening were nearly exhausted.

He warned that the funding gap had significantly weakened Nigeria’s ability to fulfil critical health security obligations at a time when external donor support for outbreak preparedness had also declined.

“If urgent and appropriate funding for the Centre is not immediately met, the strength and capacity of the NCDC to adequately respond to the resurfacing Ebola threat and other epidemic-prone diseases cannot be assured, which is extremely disastrous to Nigeria as a nation,” Ogah warned.

Sources: Premium Times