Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, has said the state remains on “high alert” for infectious disease outbreaks due to its dense population, high human traffic, and constant movement of animals and goods. Abayomi stated this during his speech at the Invest Lagos 3.0 Summit with the theme……
Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, has said the state remains on “high alert” for infectious disease outbreaks due to its dense population, high human traffic, and constant movement of animals and goods.
Abayomi stated this during his speech at the Invest Lagos 3.0 Summit with the theme “Lagos: The Business Gateway to Africa”, on Tuesday, June 9, where he discussed the state’s preparedness for public health emergencies, including diseases such as Ebola and COVID-19.
He explained that Lagos, with an estimated population exceeding 30 million people, faces continuous vulnerability to contagion due to the scale of daily movement into the state by air, sea, and land.
“We are always anxious on some kind of high alerts in Lagos because Lagos receives a huge number of human traffic, either by air, by seaports or land crossing,” he said.
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He added that the state also manages significant livestock and food inflow to sustain its population.
“About 30 million people have to be fed every day, that means we bring in about 18,000 herds of cattle a day, apart from chickens and fish and other animals. So there is a constant movement of people and animals, which puts Lagos at a huge vulnerability to contagion,” Abayomi said.
The commissioner noted that while Lagos drew important lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, he stressed that Ebola presents a far more severe threat.
“COVID is kindergarten compared to Ebola. COVID fatality rate is about 1 per cent. Ebola, the least I’ve heard is about 25 per cent, which means out of every four people that catch Ebola, one may not make it,” he said.
Abayomi disclosed that the state is strengthening its preparedness framework through what he called the “Lagos Bio-Shield,” designed to prevent the entry and spread of dangerous pathogens.
He explained that the primary focus is border surveillance, particularly at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, which he identified as a key entry point for potential health threats.
“The most important thing is how do these dangerous pathogens enter Lagos. The commonest spot is the airport, and we are already embedded there,” he said.
According to him, health authorities are actively monitoring arrivals, especially travellers from high-risk regions, while maintaining a network of epidemiologists across the state.
“We know everybody that is coming in from eastern and central Africa at this point in time. We are all networked with our epidemiologists around the state. We know where everybody is coming from and what your business is,” he said.
He added that the Bio-Shield strategy includes contact tracing systems, isolation centres, and advanced biosafety laboratories to contain any potential outbreak.
Abayomi said the integrated system is designed to ensure rapid detection and response to infectious disease threats before they spread within the state.
