The Pacesetter Frontier Magazine

Tag: covid

  • Covid: UAE to lift flight restrictions from Nigeria and other African Countries.

     

    The United Arab Emirate has said the restriction on flights arriving from Nigeria and 11 other African nations will be lifted on Saturday January 29.

    UAE’s National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA), which said it was lifting the ban initially imposed as part of measures to curb the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, also said flight arrivals could resume from countries like Botswana, Congo Republic, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

    “The excluded categories should present a negative COVID-19 test obtained within 48 hours of departure and a Rapid-PCR test at the airport within six hours of departure whenever possible and another PCR test at the airport upon arrival to UAE,” NCEMA said.

    On Wednesday January 26, NCEMA also announced that entry procedures have been updated for flights originating from Ghana, Rwanda and Uganda. Passengers are required to take a PCR test 48 hours before departure, test where possible at the departure airport, test on arrival and adhere to all precautionary measures when visiting the UAE. The new rules come into effect by 2.30pm on Saturday.

    The UAE’s NCEMA and GCAA announced last December that travelers from Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya and Ethiopia were restricted from entering the country from Saturday, December 25 citing a surge in Omicron.

     

    (Sun)

  • Omicron Variant: NCDC confirms cases of Omicron variant of Covid 19

     

    The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, on Wednesday confirmed the first case of Omicron variant in Nigeria.

    The Centre said in line with the routine travel test required of all international travellers and Genomic sequencing at the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) through Its National Reference Laboratory (NRL), Abuja, confirmed Nigeria’s first case of the Omicron variant, also known as the B.1.1.529 lineage.

    The Omicron variant, a new strain of the coronavirus disease, was reported by South Africa and first detected in Botswana.

    Following the discovery, countries such as the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Israel among others placed travel bans on southern African countries.

    Similarly, the government of Canada had also stated that it discovered two cases of the variant from two passengers from Nigeria. The Federal Government through the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19, however, said that it was investigating the issue to get more details.

    However, the NCDC on Wednesday morning said two cases of the variant were discovered through genomic sequencing. It albeit linked the cases to two passengers from South Africa.

    The statement reads in part, “In line with the routine travel tests required of all international travellers, genomic sequencing at the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control through its National Reference Laboratory, Abuja, confirms Nigeria’s first case of the Omicron variant.

    “Genomic sequencing of positive cases from routine day-two testing for travellers to Nigeria identified two cases of Omicron variant among travellers from South Africa who arrived in Nigeria last week.

    “Retrospective sequencing of previously confirmed cases among travellers to Nigeria also identified the Omicron variant among samples collected in October 2021”.

    The NCDC however added that the two patients were asymptomatic and contact tracing had begun.

     

     

     

     

    Source: www.vanguardngr.com / punch.ng

     

     

  • Covid 19: Buhari and his aides go on Isolation after trip to UK

     

    Mr Buhari and members of his entourage returned to Nigeria last Friday after about two weeks in London, UK.

     

    President Muhammadu Buhari will go on isolation in line with COVID-19 protocols after spending about two weeks in London, United Kingdom, the presidency has said.

     

    Also billed to go on isolation are officials of the government who accompanied the president on the trip.

    They include the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama; Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba; National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno (rtd) and Director General of National Intelligence Agency, Amb. Ahmed Abubakar.

     

    Mr Buhari and members of the delegation, who travelled to London on July 26, returned to Nigeria on Friday after about two weeks.

     

    They were received at the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja by his Chief of Staff, Ibrahim Gambari; Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Muhammad Bello, security chiefs as well as some presidential aides.

     

    Presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, said the officials would go on isolation in line with the guideline for international travels.

     

    “Mr President and all of those on his delegation will be isolated in line with NCDC guidelines for international travel. They all tested yesterday (Friday) and will follow up with another test in due course,” Mr Shehu told the Guardian newspaper on Sunday.

     

    While in London, Mr Buhari joined other world leaders to attend the Global Education Summit.

     

    The summit, co-hosted by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya, successfully generated about four billion dollars out of the targeted five billion dollars for the transformation of the education sector in low income countries, including Nigeria.

     

    Mr Buhari appeared on a panel of discussants with a live audience alongside his counterparts from other African countries, including Mr Kenyatta, President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana, President Faure Eyadema of Togo and President Lazarus Chakwera of Malawi.

     

    The summit focused on topical issues including Education’s Reset – Learning from COVID; Transforming the Child’s Learning Journey; Gender Equality in and Through Education; Ripple Effect – Education’s Impact on Sustainability, and Financing for Impact – Volume, Equity, Efficiency.

    At the summit, Mr Buhari pledged to increase the budget for the education sector in Nigeria by as much as 50 per cent over the next two years.

    Messrs Buhari and Johnson, also held bilateral talks, during which the two leaders appraised the war against different forms of terrorism in Nigeria, and agreed that the judicial process be allowed to run its course.

     

    The Nigerian leader also used the opportunity of the trip to undergo a medical check-up.

     

    Mr Buhari and members of his family routinely travel to the UK for medical treatment.

     

    While he was away, members of the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) began a strike over repeated failure of his administration to implement agreements signed with them.

     

    Before departing London, Mr Buhari visited former Lagos State governor and National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, who is believed to be on a medical trip to London.

     

    Meanwhile, some persons whom the president interacted with in London have tested positive for COVID-19.

    Nigeria’s High Commissioner to the UK, Sarafa Isola, and other staff of the embassy had received the president upon his arrival at the airport in London.

    The High Commission in Central London was shut down on Thursday for 10 days.

    On March 6, Mr Buhari together with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, received the first doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.

    Former Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, died of the pandemic in April 2020.

     

     

     

     

     

    Source: www.premiumtimesng.com