Osinbajo applauds, commissions disease centre in Nasarawa
VICE President Yemi Osinbajo has applauded Governor Abdullahi Sule for establishing in Nasarawa one of the biggest disease control centres in Africa.
He gave the commendation yesterday while commissioning the Nasarawa State Infectious Disease and Research Centre ( NASIDARC) in Lafia.
“The completion of this disease control centre is a remarkable achievement despite the meager resources available to the state,” Osinbajo said.
He noted that with the quality of the centre, Nigeria was ready to battle any infectious disease.
Responding, Sule thanked the nation’s second citizen for gracing the occasion.
He explained that in line with his administration’s commitment for an improved health sector, huge resources had been committed to its establishment for better diagnosis of viral infections.
“Before now, the diagnosis of several infectious diseases, such as Lassa fever, yellow fever, measles, cerebrospinal meningitis, as well as the current COVID- 19 pandemic, was conducted outside the state.
“However, with the establishment of the centre and its full operation, the perennial diagnosis and management challenges of infectious diseases previously experienced will become a thing of the past, and treatment of such ailments will be greatly enhanced,” the governor explained.
He added that the facility would also serve as research hub to provoke policy formulation.
The governor went on: “The centre will conduct clinical trials for vaccines, drugs and other products in compliance with ethical standards, as well as support training in public health and researches at all levels.”
The facility is also providing scientific guidance for local production of vaccines, diagnostic kits, sera, antisera and other related health products, according to Sule.
The Nasarawa helmsman affirmed that the “centre is equipped with the state- ofthe- art facilities, and has a provision of a biosafety levels II & III laboratories, a molecular laboratory, an isolation ward, an emergency operation centre ( EOC), an administrative structure and a conference hall.”