Nigeria COVID-19 survivor: 'An experience I don't wish on anyone'

For Oluwaseun Osowobi, the symptoms began shortly after she returned from a trip to London.

The 29-year-old Nigerian activist was in the United Kingdom capital to attend on March 9 the Commonwealth Day Service, where she was the official flag bearer.

But after arriving in Nigeria's commercial capital, Lagos, she fell ill and decided to get tested for COVID-19, the highly infectious respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus.

The test came back positive and Osowobi was taken to a specialised facility to receive medical care. She remained at an isolation ward until last week, when she was discharged following her recovery from COVID-19.

Osowobi, who runs the Stand to End Rape Initiative, a group advocating against sexual violence, spoke to Al Jazeera about contracting the new coronavirus, her experience at the isolation centre and what she plans to do now. The interview below has slightly been edited for brevity and clarity.

Al Jazeera: How does it feel having recovered from the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19)?

Osowobi: It feels great to have survived COVID-19. If you see the data of people who have passed away due to the virus, they are alarming. I'm really grateful to be alive but also grateful for the experience as I am able to share with people that COVID-19 is not a hoax like many people may believe in Nigeria.

Al Jazeera: What symptoms did you have when you fell ill? How did it feel?

Osowobi: I had high fever, was coughing heavily and had loss of appetite. I had a lot of symptoms on the COVID-19 list so I knew I had to get tested just to be sure of what the situation was because I was feeling really sick and wasn't getting better.

The virus kicked my system. It made me very weak. I was dizzy every second, I was throwing up. I lost my sense of taste but my sense of smell heightened so I could smell everything like water, food, even soaps. Everything was just disgusting to me. It was a very tough period, a very tough moment for me but I am happy I beat it.

It was an experience I don't wish anyone to have.

Al Jazeera: What was running through your mind when you found out that your test was positive?

Osowobi: The first thing that came to my mind was, "Am I going to die?" I feared that am I going to be one of the people to be counted as dead. I was asking myself, "Is Nigeria ready to handle the situation? Is Lagos state capable to handle the situation as of now?"

I was just very scared.

Al Jazeera: What was the experience with the doctors and nurses at the treatment centre?

Osowobi: It was good. Despite a very shaky start, we were able to build a relationship as things went by. I was also able to see how much they were trying their best to provide top-notch service to everyone at the centre, including myself. I had one doctor's number, so I would text him to tell him of my symptoms or call him if I was feeling a certain way.

When I was still vomiting, I would text him to say, "Help me, I don't want to die." Some of the nurses would come in and encourage me, say a word of prayer with me.

Al Jazeera: What kind of treatment were you given?

Osowobi: I was given a couple of medications to handle COVID-19 and also to handle the side effects of the medications. There was even a time the medication for my vomiting wasn't working, so I had to be given injections to suppress the desire to vomit. I had to make a conscious decision not to vomit because I needed to retain the medicine inside my system. But the virus was throwing everything out. It was a battle I won at the end.

Al Jazeera: When did the things change?

Osowobi: I re-examined my survival chances when I started getting better by the day. The vomiting had stopped, the stooling had stopped, the dizziness was gradually getting less effective - so it was an indication I was getting well. I was really excited. It renewed my hope of surviving this. They were checking my temperature in the morning, afternoon and at night - and it was getting better. My blood pressure was getting better. My pulse was getting better. I got my sense of taste back. So, I began to re-evaluate my chances of survival that yes, I could beat this.

Al Jazeera: What was running through your mind when you found out that your test was positive?

Osowobi: The first thing that came to my mind was, "Am I going to die?" I feared that am I going to be one of the people to be counted as dead. I was asking myself, "Is Nigeria ready to handle the situation? Is Lagos state capable to handle the situation as of now?"

I was just very scared.

Al Jazeera: What was the experience with the doctors and nurses at the treatment centre?

Osowobi: It was good. Despite a very shaky start, we were able to build a relationship as things went by. I was also able to see how much they were trying their best to provide top-notch service to everyone at the centre, including myself. I had one doctor's number, so I would text him to tell him of my symptoms or call him if I was feeling a certain way.

When I was still vomiting, I would text him to say, "Help me, I don't want to die." Some of the nurses would come in and encourage me, say a word of prayer with me.

Al Jazeera: What kind of treatment were you given?

Osowobi: I was given a couple of medications to handle COVID-19 and also to handle the side effects of the medications. There was even a time the medication for my vomiting wasn't working, so I had to be given injections to suppress the desire to vomit. I had to make a conscious decision not to vomit because I needed to retain the medicine inside my system. But the virus was throwing everything out. It was a battle I won at the end.

Al Jazeera: When did the things change?

Osowobi: I re-examined my survival chances when I started getting better by the day. The vomiting had stopped, the stooling had stopped, the dizziness was gradually getting less effective - so it was an indication I was getting well. I was really excited. It renewed my hope of surviving this. They were checking my temperature in the morning, afternoon and at night - and it was getting better. My blood pressure was getting better. My pulse was getting better. I got my sense of taste back. So, I began to re-evaluate my chances of survival that yes, I could beat this.

Al Jazeera

Nigeria seeks $6.9bn from lenders to fund coronavirus fight

Nigeria is requesting $6.9bn from multilateral lenders to combat the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Africa's biggest economy, the finance minister said on Monday.

Nigeria, whose revenues have tumbled with the fall in oil prices, has asked for $3.4bn from the International Monetary Fund, $2.5bn from the World Bank and $1bn from the African Development Bank, said Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning Zainab Ahmed.

Nigeria is the African continent's biggest oil producer and is still recovering from a recession caused by the last period of weak oil prices. As of Sunday, it had 232 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus and five deaths.

A two-week lockdown was imposed last week on Lagos State, home to the nation's sprawling commercial hub, as well as neighbouring Ogun State and the capital territory of Abuja, to prevent the virus spreading across the country.

The minister told a news conference in Abuja that Nigeria was one of several African states seeking the suspension of debt-servicing obligations for 2020 and 2021 from multilateral lenders.

The requests are part of a broader debate over debt relief. But analysts say securing such relief will be a challenge as it requires winning approval from a disparate array of creditors.

The IMF, which has received requests for help from about 80 nations, including 20 African countries, is making about $50bn available from its emergency financing facilities to help countries cope with the crisis. The World Bank has approved a $14bn response package.

Nigeria's finance minister said IMF support would not be tied to a formal programme and the funds would not have conditions attached.

Cutting spending

"It is important to clarify that Nigeria does not intend to negotiate or enter into a formal programme with the International Monetary Fund, at this time, or in the foreseeable future," Ahmed added.

The government said last month that spending in the $34.6bn budget for 2020 would have to be cut by around $4.9bn due to low oil prices and the impact of the pandemic, which has driven down global demand for fuel.

The minister said the budget would assume an oil price of $30 a barrel, down from $57, and production of 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) rather than 2.1 million bpd.

"The emerging health and economic risks resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and decline in international oil prices pose existential threats to Nigeria's economy, healthcare system, national security, as well as the lives of our citizens," said Ahmed.

Nigeria, where economic growth had been about two percent, is still struggling to shake off a 2016 recession caused by a previous slide in oil prices to below $30 a barrel. In the latest crisis, oil prices plunged to a nearly two-decade low of close to $20 per barrel.

Fitch Ratings on Monday pushed Nigeria's debt rating deeper into "junk" territory, rating it a "B" and saying it expected the virus pandemic to drive the economy back into recession. It forecast the economy would contract one percent in 2020.

Ahmed said the government had provided 102.5 billion naira ($270m) to support the healthcare sector, of which 6.5 billion naira ($16m) had already been made available as critical expenditure for the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control.

Lagos State, where most confirmed cases of the virus in the country have been identified, had received 10 billion naira ($26m) in emergency funding, the minister said.

On Saturday, the government said it planned to create a coronavirus fund to strengthen its healthcare infrastructure.

On Monday, Ahmed said the president approved the fund and said backing from lawmakers was being sought to borrow the money from special accounts.


Al Jazeera

Trapped by Coronavirus, Nigeria’s Elite Faces Squalid Hospitals

For decades, powerful Nigerians could ignore the government’s failure to invest adequately in the health-care system by seeking medical treatment abroad. The coronavirus pandemic means they can no longer escape.

Since Nigeria identified its first case in late February, President Muhammadu Buhari has responded by closing the borders and imposing a lockdown on two key cities and the state of Ogun, an industrial hub. Commercial flights and private jets have been grounded. Like most African countries, Nigeria is now largely cut off from the world.

The pandemic has forced much of Africa’s elite into a unique situation where it’s no longer possible to fly to the U.K., France or India to see a doctor, a practice that’s become commonplace even among the affluent middle class.

Buhari was widely criticized for spending more than five months in the U.K. in 2017 for an undisclosed ailment. Last year, Gabon’s president, Ali Bongo, recovered in Morocco from a stroke, while Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe’s former leader, died in a hospital in Singapore.

In Nigeria, the coronavirus has so far infected 174 people, including Abba Kyari, Buhari’s chief of staff, a man regarded as the second-most powerful in the country. Four out of 36 state governors and a son of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar have also tested positive. A former senior executive of the state oil company, Suleiman Achimugu, was the first Covid-19 fatality.

‘Total Collapse’

Dozens of senior public officials, including state governors and lawmakers, have gone into isolation. If they get sick, they will have to rely on a weak health system that is at risk of crumbling under the weight of a larger outbreak, according to Francis Faduyile, head of the Nigerian Medical Association, an umbrella group for doctors.

“The health system is not strong enough,” Faduyile said by phone from Lagos. “Over the years, it’s been denied normal funding and things are not where they’re supposed to be. If the burden of the coronavirus is added, it may be too heavy; it may actually cause a total collapse.”

Among Nigeria’s registered health professionals are 75,000 doctors, 180,709 nurses and 25,000 pharmacists, according to the health ministry. With 0.5% hospital beds per 1,000 people and a population of roughly 200 million, that’s far below thresholds set by the World Health Organization. Only five laboratories are able to test for the virus.

Health spending at around 5% of the budget in the past decade falls short of the African Union’s recommended minimum of 15% and has been mostly focused on recurrent spending, with little capital investment made over the years, according to BudgiT, a civil-society group that tracks government expenditure. A National Health Act that came into effect in 2015 and requires that 1% of government revenue is set aside for basic health care has yet to be implemented.

Even those numbers may not tell the whole story as officials of the medical association say about half of all registered doctors have emigrated to the U.K., the U.S., Canada, Australia and other parts of the world.

While Faduyile said there’s still time for the government to institute large-scale preventative measures, a wider coronavirus outbreak would leave everyone in Africa’s most populous country -- the rich, the poor and the middle class -- scrambling for service in poorly equipped hospitals.

“It’s going to be a lesson for those who think they can neglect the health system,” Faduyile said. “The highest of the government officials, some of them will be infected, and they’ll have no option but to get local treatment.”

By Dulue Mbachu


Bloomberg

Nigeria becomes eight African nation to welcome bitcoin ATMs

Africa’s largest country has welcomed its first Bitcoin ATM.

Blockstale BTM, the company that installed the ATM in the Dazey Lounge and Bar in Lagos state, plans to launch more than 30 more terminals across Nigeria.

“Despite all the legal uncertainties about cryptocurrencies in Nigeria, Nigerians happen to be the highest crypto traders in Africa,” Blockstale’s chief executive and founder, Daniel Adekunle, told local media on April 1.

Adekunle developed his Bitcoin ATMs in partnership with a tech firm based in Shenzhen, China.

Nigeria welcomes Africa’s 15th Bitcoin ATM

Despite being home to the largest trade volume in Africa, Nigeria is the eighth country in the continent to host a Bitcoin ATM — with Blockstale’s comprising the 15th in Africa.

According to CoinATMRadar, South Africa is home to seven crypto ATMs, Ghana hosts two, and Botswana, Djibouti, Kenya, Uganda and Zimbabwe each have a single terminal.

With Nigeria comprising Africa’s largest economy and population, the country’s first Bitcoin ATM may be a signpost for broader adoption across the continent. Coinstale’s terminal is only the second Bitcoin ATM in West Africa.

Nigerian LocalBitcoins volume drops after KYC overhaul

Recent weeks have seen roughly 220 Bitcoins, or $1.38 million worth, of peer-to-peer (P2P) trade between BTC and Nigerian Naira on LocalBitcoins.

However, Nigerian LocalBitcoins has dropped by roughly 50% since the P2P platform strengthened its KYC requirements during September 2019.

Nigerian ‘Bitcoin’ searches top Google Trends

Nigeria also consistently tops Google searches for ‘Bitcoin’ — driving nearly twice the traffic as the second-ranked country, Austria, according to Google Trends.

Three of the top five ranked nations for ‘Bitcoin’ searches are African — with South Africa and Ghana ranking third and fifth respectively.

By Samuel Haig

Cointelegraph 

MTN to Move Ahead on Nigeria Stock Sale Amid Market Turmoil

MTN Group Ltd. will push on with a plan to reduce its majority stake in the wireless carrier’s Nigerian business, though turmoil caused by the coronavirus may require the sale to be done in smaller chunks than anticipated.

The impact of the pandemic on international financial markets doesn’t change the importance of selling part of the 79% shareholding to local investors, Chief Financial Officer Ralph Mupita said in an interview. However, the rest of a three-to-five year plan to dispose of 25-billion rand ($1.4 billion) of assets will probably take a back seat for now, he said.

“In Nigeria we still want to do part of our retail offer, even if it’s a smaller part of the total planned sale,” Mupita said by phone. “We are applying our minds to doing this at the moment.”

MTN is disposing of part of its largest division after a series of disputes with Nigerian authorities, most recently over tax payments and the withdrawal of cash from the country. The plan is to sell about a 15% stake to local investors, reducing MTN’s ownership to about 64%. MTN Nigeria Communications Ltd. was listed in Lagos last year, and is the country’s second-biggest publicly traded company.

Nigeria is MTN’s biggest market, accounting for a third of overall 2019 revenue and almost 40% of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. The Johannesburg-based company is also the biggest provider of telecom services in the country, with almost 69 million customers, according to the Nigerian Communications Commission.
Share Rally

The drastic fall in oil prices, hurting major producers including Nigeria, and the outbreak of the coronavirus has weighed on MTN’s share price, which hit 15-year lows last week. The stock has since rallied for six straight days, and traded as much as 21% higher in Johannesburg on Tuesday -- the biggest jump in two decades.

“We of course have no visibility on how all of this could play out, but the business currently has a resilient balance sheet and is highly cash generative, with most of our business coming from pre-paid contracts,” Mupita said.

MTN’s cash position was bolstered by the sale of 14 billion rand in assets last year, including stakes in telecom-tower companies in certain African markets. Some of that was paid in dollars, which provides a currency hedge against the weakening rand, the CFO said. MTN also has a credit facility that can be accessed if needed, he added.

MTN expects an increase in data usage as more and more of its markets go into lockdown due to the outbreak of the coronavirus.

“We want to make sure that our networks have resilience and capacity,” Mupita said. “We are looking at where we can drive broader coverage.”

By Loni Prinsloo

Bloomberg