African countries not prepared for COVID-19 – Dr Ebegba
Dr Rufus Ebegba, an agriculturist and environmental biologist is the Director General/Chief Executive Officer of the National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA). In this interview with MICHAEL JEGEDE, Ebegba spoke on the COVID-19 pandemic and lessons to be learnt from the global menace, particularly by African countries. Excerpts:
The National Biosafety Management Agency was established in 2015; five years down the line, what would you say has been the success story of the agency?
Yes, the agency was established in 2015. Being a new agency, the challenge of establishing a new agency was actually there. But we want to say that we thank God Almighty for giving us the ability to survive and also grateful to the federal government for creating an enabling environment for us to thrive and make some visible and tangible progress that has enhanced the Nigerian economy. When a new agency is being established, in fact, the first thing you need to do is for infrastructure to be put in place and also the personnel need to be put together. We have succeeded in doing that. The agency rose from no staff to the level of 354 staff in various capacities and disciplines. Through our range of activities, we have been able to develop various guidelines for biosafety management in the country. We have also come up with various regulations. We have also reviewed the first policy. We now have a new policy in tandem with the Act establishing the agency. The first policy predated the Act. We have been able to align the policy with the Act. Not only that we have been able to commence various activities that have led to the expansion of the economy, particularly in the area of processing of applications, the confined field trial for experimental purposes and for the commercialization of some genetically-modified organisms like cowpea which is beans and also cottons. These products we have been able to midwife them to an extent of them becoming products that enhance higher productivity for farmers. We have not only done that we have been able to also play an active role globally.
No doubt, there are specific targets the agency may have set upon its establishment in 2015. Would you say you have met some of those specific targets?
Yes, our major target is to have an agency that would meet the international requirement in the area of Biosafety enforcement and regulations. And I can tell you we have been able to attain that. In Africa, Nigeria is a model to reckon within the area of Biosafety enforcement and compliance. Right now we are the Chair of West Africa Biosafety Regulators Forum. That is Nigeria is the Chair for all biosafety agencies for Africa and even West Africa. And we have also been involved in the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity in the area of the protocol which dwells on biosafety. We are a major player at the UN conventions and conferences. We have been playing major roles. So, if you really find out globally Nigeria is now in the global map in the area of biosafety regulations. So we have been able to meet that target. The target to have a world-class national biosafety system that is holistic and can actually stand the test of time.
What efforts have you made for your agency to have office accommodation of its own?
You know infrastructure in the area of the building is very capital intensive. Incidentally, some money was actually allocated for the office, at least the seed money to start the foundation of a new office for the agency in the year 2020. But because of this pandemic, you know the budget is being reviewed downward and I don’t think we can achieve that. Funding has been a major constraint. For now we are at the National Park Service operating from an inadequate office space. We have made various efforts. We have written some other line agencies and ministries like Federal Ministry of Works to assist us to get an office. But we believe that over time we will overcome the problem.
How would you describe the current situation where the entire globe is being ravaged by the deadly coronavirus named COVID-19?
This particularly question is very germane at this time. The world is actually experiencing a battle with an organism that is not visible. And as a matter of fact, great nations have been demystified and science has been challenged. The whole world is under apprehension. The existence of human race is being threatened and I think we must as humans, as governments of various countries, we must put our hands on desk and the issue of biosecurity must become very prominent. We must develop our national biosecurity system. Prior to now we have not been able to come up with a holistic national biosecurity system. In the month of January this year we had a stakeholders’ meeting involving various ministries and agencies even the Defence and Police were all involved in that meeting. We concluded that we need to have a national biosecurity policy, the national biosecurity emergency response strategy. This is very, very important. Right now we are in an emergency situation. If we have we would have been able to know who does what. But right now the pandemic we have is concentrated in one body and that organization is overstretched. We need a holistic system where various groups should be involved and various functions designated, not necessarily concentrating all the functions in one organization. And we are also hoping to have a national biosafety committee where various stakeholders will be involved. Another major thing we are also proposing is to have a national biosafety centre which will serve as a research centre and also serve as an emergency response centre and some other responsibilities will be assigned to the centre and the National Biosafety Management Agency will drive that particular project to a logical conclusion.
How do you see our national response strategy as being championed by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19?
Let me commend the President on the establishment of a Presidential Task Force. We are on an unusual situation, an emergency situation. When you have an emergency situation you need a high-powered body to drive the process. You can see that the presidential task force chairman, the national coordinator, the NCDC and other bodies that are working hard and at the state level we have other committees as well. This is an unusual situation and the steps we have taken so far are in the right direction. But we need the commitment of the various members of these committees to see that this pandemic is brought to a halt. Certainly we are in an unusual situation and our economy is being threatened. Human life is being threatened. The environment is being threatened. So, we must all work hard to help prevent the spread. Nigerians should trust the government and also try to abide by the various code of conduct for this period. We can all overcome it. Nobody wants to die. We don’t want our loved ones to die. We need our loved ones. And I also want to urge our spiritual leaders – Muslims, Christians – to seek divine inspiration on this matter because truly the world is held hostage.
The COVID-19 scourge clearly took us unaware and we were not prepared. What are the lessons that you think we should learn from the pandemic?
Over the years we have not taken our health system seriously. Yes, no one was prepared, particularly African countries were not prepared. So with what has happened now, it shows that we must develop our health system; have a specialist hospital with all the necessary facilities. Over the years our leaders have been going abroad for treatment. Now nobody goes out for treatment. We are all in the same basket. Therefore, there is need for a national reawakening, national consciousness to develop our hospitals and have well-trained manpower – men and women – at the frontline that are committed. They should be properly remunerated so that they will show that commitment. Before you can protect somebody you must also be protected. Not the Federal Government alone, the states and even the local governments must all partake in ensuring that we have good hospitals with adequate medical facilities across the country. As the world is developing, new diseases are emerging, new pathogens are coming up. So, we need to be adequately prepared so that we will not fall a victim of this kind of situation in the near future.
Having worked with your staff in the last five years, what would be your words of encouragement to them as you continue to pilot the affairs of the agency?
Having worked in the last five years with our staff I believe that the National Biosafety Management Agency is a family. One thing I am trying to do is in the area of mentoring for sustainability. And also to ensure that there will be no vacuum when I am no more here. We have been able to train critical mass of staff to handle various aspect of Biosafety. One area we need to really concentrate on like I told you is the area of biosecurity. And we are doing all that needs to be done. It is just last year that we were given this mandate. This pandemic has really slowed us down in all what we want to achieve in that regard. But I still believe that in the next three years that I will still be here, we will able to ensure that the system is consolidated with men and women who will have the confidence to be able to discharge what needs to be done and to implement the national biosafety laws and regulations and even the guidelines to be enforced. Five years down the line we have not done badly. We have been able to develop the capacity and proficiency of the staff. You know, a lion begets a lion. I will leave behind strong men and women who will be able to drive the biosafety system.
