For the most part, this coronavirus pandemic had been just news propagated by the media to me. For the most part, it had ravaged the entire world asides Africa. The theory was that the virus did not do well in hot regions like sub-Saharan African and it made a lot of sense until recently.
About 2-3 weeks ago the first confirmed case of the coronavirus reported in Lagos, Nigeria. This struck fear into the hearts of my many Nigerians. Given the poor state of our health sector, such concerns we're only rational. Currently, there is only one isolation center in Lagos, a state of over 18 million people (there are currently only 5 laboratories that can test for the virus in Nigeria). The isolation center has a hundred beds.
1 bed : 180,000 Lagosians
Currently, we do not have the capacity to conduct mass testing which is imperative in tackling this virus. There are so many more reasons why this might go terribly wrong.
Many individuals took to social media to request that the government closes our borders and restrict flights from countries with high known cases. But like most governments around the world, the Nigerian government tried to play down the situation and claimed to have the matter under control. Currently, there are a total of 36 confirmed cases in Nigeria.
Due to the low number of testing, it is believed that this figure doesn't represent the reality on the ground.
How are Nigerians reacting to the situation?
I stay in Lagos State one of the most populated states in Nigeria and it can be said that the majority are aware of the virus. However, their attitude towards the virus is lackadaisical. A vast majority of the people are either indifferent or seeking divine intervention. On Friday, the Lagos state government shut down all schools and prohibited public gatherings of more than 50 persons. Making policies in Nigeria is one thing, implementing them is another thing entirely. It was sad to see many religious institutions carry out their activities disregarding the government directives. In the early hours of today, I saw a neighbor of mine taking his kids to school. This type of irresponsibility by citizens, I fear, will lead to the widespread of the virus. Given the capacity of the Nigerian Health sector, we might have a situation worse than China and Italy.
Around two days I had mild difficulty breathing (which has been sporadic). No fever or coughing or sneezing or weakness which is not the case for the bulk of cases registered. I have had issues with respiratory diseases in the past but I must admit that I am kind of scared. I will contact the center for disease control if symptoms persist or get worse. I've been indoor for basically 2-3weeks now and I have not been in contact with any of the index patient. But you cannot be too sure.
As at the time I am writing there are five new confirmed cases in Nigeria. It is safe to say that we might have a large number of cases in our hands in the coming week. I'm currently practicing social distancing as one of the effective ways to stay safe and protect the people around me.
Panic and fear
What I feel might aggravate the situation is fear. Misinformation is another means of spreading fear and due to the high illiteracy rate, it will be easy to propagate lies.
Financing
Nigeria is in a very bad position to tackle a pandemic of this nature, financial. The Country is deep in debt. Our major source of foreign exchange petroleum isn't selling well. The price of oil has dropped by over 50%. The demand for the commodity has reduced and that puts Nigeria in a bad position. We might need the international communities to bail us out again.
Personally one of my greatest concerns is getting food and supplies for my family. The year started on rough for me as I needed to settle loans and cover for my sibling's tuition fees. By the time I would get my next salary (which is in about 10days) we might have a total lockdown. There are over 60% of Nigerians living in extreme poverty. If the situation isn't curtailed, which I doubt, we might have more than just overwhelmed medical practitioners and hospitals, we might also see a rise in crime and other social vices.
The only reasonable thing that can be done at this point is to adhere to the safety measure: washing hands, social distancing, etc all hope is not lost yet. It's not a lost course, we are all not doomed. Yes, the virus has been spreading fast and wide but we have had more recovery than deaths. Also given that the Nigerian population is very young we might have a low mortality rate.
How is your country handling the pandemic?
Reference:
(@NCDCgov): https://twitter.com/NCDCgov?s=09
Twitter link:
Stay safe out there
The figure is increasing every day. No one is safe anymore