Nigeria Declares National Emergency over Ebola
Nigeria's president on Friday declared a national emergency over the deadly Ebola virus that has claimed two lives in Africa's most populous country.
"President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan Friday in Abuja declared the control and containment of the Ebola virus in Nigeria, a national emergency," his office said in a statement.
The president called on the population to avoid large gatherings in order to prevent the spread of the virus.
"Religious and political groups, spiritual healing centers, families, associations and other bodies should ... discourage gatherings and activities that may unwittingly promote close contact with infected persons or place others at risk," said the presidency.
Jonathan also approved the immediate release of 1.9 billion naira ($11.67 million) to fund measures against the spread of the virus.
Among measures to be undertaken include the setting up of additional isolation centers, screening at borders and contact tracing.
In addition, the president warned against any movement of corpses of infected persons.
"Every death should be reported to the relevant authorities, and special precautions should be taken in handling corpses," said the presidency in the statement.
Nigeria on Wednesday confirmed five new cases of Ebola in Lagos and a second death from the virus, bringing the total number of infections in sub-Saharan Africa's largest city to seven.
Source: Agence France Presse
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