Nigeria desperately needs scientific investment to tackle COVID-19
Scientific responses
On 1 March 2020, an Italian man was identified as thefirst caseof COVID-19 in Nigeria by the National Center for Disease Control. Within three days of receiving the specimen, the African Centre of Excellence for Genomics of Infectious Diseases assembled a full genome of SARS-CoV-2. This wasthe firstsequenced genome of the virus from the African continent.
This was immediately made available to the global scientific community to help inform the public health response, improve surveillance, and facilitate drug, diagnostics, and vaccine development.
The center remains at the frontline of Nigeria’s response by carrying out a daily diagnosis of suspected COVID-19 samples. At its disposal are state-of-the-art sequencing and advanced bioinformatic tools to understand the epidemiology, evolution, spread, and virulence of the virus. This has generated data that have informed covid-19 rapid diagnostics development, vaccine design, and production, as well as policy formulation. The data have contributed significantly to the international scientific community.
One of the innovations by the center is a COVID-19self-screening tooltailored for Nigerians to assess their risk of exposure. This phone app tool factors in not just scientific and epidemiological data but also the socio-cultural diversity of the country. The screening is available in English and different languages spoken in Nigeria.
Since the app was released, over 4,100 Nigerians have completed the test with over 6,800 users and traffic of over 84,000 as of August 29, 2020. The tool has been effective in reducing panic, improving health access, and reducing response time.
In addition to daily screening of clinical samples, areal-time interactive mapshowing confirmed cases across Nigeria was developed by the African Centre of Excellence for Genomics of Infectious Diseases. It gives an overview of laboratory-confirmed cases nationwide, using data from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control.
The map is updated daily as new cases are confirmed and provides an immediate update on the outbreak. This helps the country to identify hotspots and make evidence-based decisions and policies.
Investment in science research is needed
Greater investment in research and development would help Nigeria create a pool of talent and expertise to develop solutions to other problems too.
Investment in science also means investment in the future of science – the next generation of scientists. This would require investing in tertiary education, professional development, and an environment that supports mentorship. It requires infrastructure such as laboratories, laboratory equipment, and an uninterrupted power supply to carry out experiments.
To achieve this, Nigeria needs political will coupled with commitment, partnerships, and the right leadership. The country is lagging behind in science when compared to other African countries in the region but the current pandemic gives it an opportunity to make science a priority once and for all.
This article is republished fromThe ConversationbyChristian Happi, Professor of Molecular Biology and Genomics,Redeemer’s UniversityandIfeyinwa Aniebo, Research fellow (Harvard Takemi fellow),Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Healthunder a Creative Commons license. Read theoriginal article.
Story byThe Conversation
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