NAIJAFEED

Tuesday, August 20, 2024

Nigeria records decline in Mpox cases

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has reported a decline in the number of suspected and confirmed Mpox cases in the country over the past four weeks.

The NCDC said this via its official website on Monday.

Mpox is an infectious viral disease that can occur in humans and other animals. Symptoms include a rash that forms blisters, fever and swollen lymph nodes.

The illness is usually mild, and most infected individuals recover within a few weeks without treatment.

The public health agency in its latest data, said 51 new suspected cases were reported between Epidemiological (Epi) weeks 29 to 32 of 2024.

According to the NCDC, that was a significant drop from the 102 cases reported during the previous four weeks (Epi Week 25 to 28).

It said that these cases were recorded across 26 local government areas (LGAs) in 18 states.

The agency said that out of the new suspected cases, two were confirmed positive, with one case each reported in Ebonyi and Enugu.

It said that this also marked a decrease from the seven confirmed cases recorded in the earlier period.

“The following outlined case definitions for suspected Mpox case are an acute illness with fever 38.3°C, intense headache, lymphadenopathy, back pain, and myalgia.

“Intense asthenia follows one to three days later by a progressively developing rash often beginning on the face and spreading to other parts of the body,” it said.

It described a probable case as one that meets the clinical case definition, is not laboratory-confirmed, but has an epidemiological link to a confirmed case.

“A confirmed case is a clinically compatible case that is laboratory-confirmed.

“Contact is any person who has been in direct or indirect contact with a confirmed case since the onset of symptoms,” it said.

The NCDC highlighted that in 2024 alone, Mpox had been confirmed in 19 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), affecting 30 Local Government Areas.

“Since the resurgence of Mpox in Nigeria in September 2017, the country has seen a cumulative total of 4,603 suspected cases, with 1,125 confirmed cases (24.4 per cent ) across 35 states and the FCT.

“The disease has disproportionately affected males, who account for approximately 70 per cent of confirmed cases.

“Seventeen deaths have been recorded since 2017,” it said.

It said that the Case Fatality Rate for mpox was calculated based on confirmed cases only.

To prevent the spread of Mpox, the NCDC advised the public to avoid close contact with individuals showing symptoms, particularly those with rashes or skin lesions.

“Practice good hand hygiene by regularly washing hands with soap and water or using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

“Wear protective gear (gloves, masks) when caring for someone with suspected or confirmed Mpox.

“Avoid contact with animals that may harbour the virus, such as rodents and primates, especially in areas where Mpox is known to occur.

“Ensure meat is thoroughly cooked before consumption,” It said.

It urged healthcare providers to be vigilant for patients presenting fever, rash, and other Mpox symptoms, especially if they have a history of travel to affected areas or contact with suspected cases.

“Promptly isolate suspected cases to prevent transmission within healthcare settings. Notify the relevant public health authorities immediately upon identifying a suspected case.

“Educate patients on the importance of reporting symptoms early and adhering to isolation guidelines if diagnosed with Mpox,” it said.

The NCDC said that the National Mpox Technical Working Group (TWG), comprising multi-sectoral and multi-partner teams, continued its efforts to monitor and respond to the outbreak across the nation.

The public health agency urged Nigerians to remain vigilant and adhere to public health guidelines to curb the spread of Mpox, particularly in affected states.

By Ezekiel Oyero, Premium Times

President Tinubu Heads for France in Newly Acquired Aircraft

Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu traveled to France on Monday for a “work stay” on a newly acquired private jet, sparking criticism as the West African nation endures a cost-of-living crisis.

The Airbus A330 business jet, now registered to the Nigerian Air Force, left the capital Abuja for Nice, according to FlightRadar24. The model, typically used as a twin-aisle passenger jet, was purchased last month for $100 million, according to Premium Times, a local online newspaper. It had been advertised on Aircraft24, a platform to buy and sell aircraft.

“The new plane, bought far below the market price, saves Nigeria huge maintenance and fuel costs, running into millions of dollars yearly,” Bayo Onanuga, a spokesman for the presidency said in an emailed statement. It replaces a 19-year-old Boeing 737-700, Onanuga said.

The latest addition to Nigeria’s presidential fleet prompted an outcry on social media, coming amid a cost-of-living crisis that’s triggered unrest in Africa’s most populous nation. At least 21 people died in Aug. 1 protests after security forces cracked down, according to Amnesty International. Nearly half of the people in Nigeria live in extreme poverty.

The decision to buy a presidential jet while people “are going through a horrifying economic hardship shows the insensitivity of this administration,” Peter Obi, the second runner-up to Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election, said in a post on X. “It has also exposed multiple dimensions to our leadership failure and our insensitivity to the plight of the growing poor class in our midst.”

Inflation accelerated to a 28-year high of 34.2% in June in Nigeria before slowing in July to 33.4%. Pump prices have more than doubled after Tinubu cut gasoline subsidies, while the local currency has depreciated by 70% since June last year.

The A330 was acquired from AMAC Aerospace, according to data on tracking website planespotters.net. The aircraft was previously owned by Midroc Aviation.

By Anthony Osae-Brown and Siddharth Philip, Bloomberg

Monday, August 19, 2024

Video - Nigerian authorities working to secure release kidnapped students

The 20 students were kidnapped while heading to a convention in Benue State on Thursday evening.

CGTN

MTN posts half-year loss as Nigeria currency devaluation weighs

MTN Group reported a half-year loss on Monday as Africa's biggest telecom operator grappled with the devaluation of the Nigerian naira and operational challenges in Sudan.

It said it was working on cutting costs and reiterated it was on track to reach a target to sell off non-core assets by next year.

The company reported a loss before tax of 9 billion rand ($507 million) in the six-month period ended June 30, compared with a restated profit of 8.3 billion rand a year earlier.

"The further devaluation in the naira against the U.S. dollar ... and the ongoing conflict in Sudan had the most significant impact on reported results," CEO Ralph Mupita said.

Nigeria has suffered chronic dollar shortages that have forced authorities to devalue the naira twice in less than a year, as part of the new government's measures to stabilise the currency and attract investment.
MTN Nigeria which was the group's largest business, is now its second biggest by revenue.

The unit has a number of initiatives aimed at restoring profit and addressing its negative equity position, including concluding renegotiations earlier this month on tower lease terms with tower operator IHS.

The improved commercial terms are expected to result in annualised cost savings of between 100 billion to 110 billion naira ($71 million), with annualised EBITDA margin benefit of 4 to 6 percentage points, Mupita told investors.

This is "not a silver bullet in addressing negative equity," Mupita said, but added discussions continued on proposed tariff increases with Nigerian authorities that could help.

MTN Group, which has 288 million customers across 18 markets in Africa, said its group service revenue decreased 20.8% to 85.3 billion rand. In constant currency, group service revenue rose 12.1%.

The company has raised 21.7 billion rand so far as part of its 25 billion rand non-core asset sales programme and should reach its target by next year, Mupita said on a post-earnings media call.

The telecom operator reduced its stakes in MTN Ghana and MTN Uganda during the reporting period for a combined 1.7 billion rand.

There will be further stake sales in Ghana of about 2.1%, and in Cameroon, Ivory Coast and Nigeria, according to Mupita.

By Nqobile Dludla, Reuters

Nigeria Owes State Oil Firm $4.9 Billion Fuel-Subsidy Debt

Nigeria owes its state-owned oil company almost half of what it plans to collect in revenues this year for a gasoline subsidy it reintroduced in August.

Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. is owed 7.8 trillion naira ($4.9 billion) by the government in subsidy debts for the seven-months to July, according to NNPC’s Chief Financial Officer Umar Ajiya. The government aims to collect 19.4 trillion naira in revenue this year.

The subsidy that was withdrawn in May last year by Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu to help repair the state’s finances after debt-service costs jumped to 96% of revenues was reinstated to allow measures to be introduced that could cushion Nigerians from spiraling inflation that’s at 33%.

The government will allow NNPC to offset about 2.2 trillion naira it owes the state against the subsidy debt, Ajiya said in an interview after the company announced its results in Abuja, the capital.

The government accumulated the debt to the NNPC because it is the sole importer of gasoline, which it resells to marketers at below market cost to keep prices low. A liter of fuel sells for about 617 naira at the pump at NNPC retail stations in Lagos, the commercial capital, compared with more than a 1,000 naira in neighboring countries, fueling cross-border smuggling of the product.

The state-oil company recorded an annual profit of 3.3 trillion naira in 2023, compared with 2.55 trillion naira a year earlier. It plans to invest $6.6 billion in its operations this year, which will be largely borrowed, Ajiya said.

It foresees crude and condensates production increasing to 2 million barrels a day by year end from an average of 1.75 million barrels per day in August, helped by improved security to combat oil theft, said Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, executive vice president of the company’s upstream division.

By Ruth Olurounbi, Bloomberg