Lagos intensifies Ebola surveillance at MMIA

…ramps up prevention measures

The Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, has led a high-powered delegation on a facility inspection and preparedness tour of the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, amid growing concerns over the resurgence of Ebola in East Africa.

The delegation included the Special Adviser to the Governor on Health, Dr. Kemi Ogunyemi; Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Health, Dr. Dayo Lajide; Director of Epidemiology, Biosecurity and Global Health, Dr. Ismail Abdus-Salam; and strategic leads of the Lagos State Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC). They were received by the Airport Manager and Regional General Manager, South-West MMIA, Mr. Olatokunbo Arewa, alongside key airport health and aviation officials.

Speaking during the engagement, Prof. Abayomi recalled Nigeria’s successful containment of Ebola in 2014 after the disease was imported into Lagos, describing the experience as one of the most significant public health lessons in the nation’s history.

He noted that MMIA remains Nigeria’s most critical international gateway, accounting for about 70 per cent of all international passenger traffic into the country, making it the most likely point through which imported infectious diseases could enter Nigeria.

According to the Commissioner, the visit was aimed at assessing existing preparedness measures, identifying operational gaps, and strengthening collaboration with airport authorities to enhance disease surveillance and response mechanisms.

“The primary purpose of our visit is to understand how we can support your efforts, identify existing gaps and jointly develop practical solutions. Our objective is to create a bottleneck for the virus, not for passengers,” Abayomi stated.

He further advocated measures that would reduce interactions between passengers arriving from designated high-risk locations and other travellers, while ensuring that airport operations and passenger movement remain efficient and uninterrupted.

Earlier, Mr. Arewa reaffirmed the airport’s commitment to preventing Ebola from entering Nigeria through the country’s busiest aviation gateway, assuring the delegation that airport authorities would continue to work closely with health agencies to strengthen surveillance and emergency response systems.