Pandemic
Kaduna university expands online lectures to cover undergraduates
The Kaduna State University (KASU) says it has expanded its current online lectures to cover all departments in postgraduate and the undergraduate programmes to keep the students learning while on Coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown. The university’s Director of Academic Planning, Dr Salisu Tahir, made this known in an interview with newsmen in Kaduna on Monday. Tahir said that the university’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) team had recommended the use of Zoom platform for postgraduate lectures and Google Class for the undergraduate lectures. He said that the university had begun a week-long training for the academic staff to effectively adopt the user-friendly platforms to teach the students. He added that the directorate of academic planning had developed a module to enable ...
Ekiti discharges five patients, expands isolation centre
Ekiti State Government on Monday disclosed that five patients of the deadly coronavirus pandemic have been discharged from the Isolation Centre in Ekiti on Monday. This is just as the government revealed it’s a plan to expand the Isolation Centre to 100-bed space capacity for more preparation on the Pandemic. Governor Kayode Fayemi had on Saturday evening broke the news on his Twitter handle that the state recorded new three cases. According to the tweet from the Governor, “We got information from NCDC tonight that three more persons tested positive to COVID-19 virus. Two are contacts of the medical doctor still in our care and another person who sneaked into the state before he was quarantined. This underscores the need for extra vigilance. ” With the development so far, Ekiti has 15 conf...
NITDA chief advocates for a ‘digital first’ strategy in coronavirus recovery plan
Commonwealth of Nations On April 30, 2020, the Director-General of NITDA, Mr Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, delivered a presentation on the role of digital technology in limiting the damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in a webinar organized by Nile University of Nigeria. The webinar themed “Dealing with Coronavirus: Digital First Perspective,” was another in a series of virtual seminars held by the Nile University of Nigeria in its quest to ensure that its non-classroom educational activities (similar to its regular lectures) are not disrupted by COVID-19. This sentiment was echoed in the program’s opening address by the Vice-Chancellor of Nile University of Nigeria, Prof. Osman Nuri Aras, who stated the University’s commitment to continuing its educational activities (both classroom and non...
Fear of ‘One million boys’ turn landlords to night guard
Tebogo Letsie/Associated Press Perplexed after the order by President Muhammadu Buhari on a total lockdown of Lagos and Abuja amid the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, residents of Egan-Igando area of Lagos state, who had always maintained their crowd in major meeting points, had to come to skepticism on movements and trading system. Egan-Igando, an area under the Alimosho Local government of Lagos state, is a community that houses home based residents, several businesses, shops, religious organisations, market places and a district police station ; all which are filled up with people during the usual routine movement. Nearly a week into the lockdown, reports on the robbery attacks perpetrated by the ‘one million boys’ gang has gotten to community residents with every household ensuring...
Kano evacuates 1, 213 almajiris to their home state
Kano State Government on Sunday said no fewer than 1, 213 Almajiris have been evacuated to their state of origin. Alhaji Murtala Sule Garo, Chairman, Kano State Almajiri Evacuation Committee told newsmen in Kano that “due process and proper screening are the hallmark of the ongoing evacuation exercise.” Garo who is also the Commissioner for Local government revealed that the Committee worked with the state Ministry of Health to ensure that Almajiris taken out of Kano to their respective states of origin are in good health. He said Kano has so far, received over 200 Almajiris returnees from Kaduna, Plateau and Niger states respectively. Garo stressed ‘as I speak to you, they are being quarantined in Kiru Reformatory Institute, where they are being provided with free feeding and medication b...
Abuja hotel says no space to lodge Nigerian returnees
The management of one of the hotels designated as accommodation for evacuated Nigerians from abroad in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic has denied being part of the arrangement. Last week in Abuja, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ferdinand Nwonye, listed Chida International Hotel, Bolingo, Apo Apartments, Royalty, Belvior and Barcelona Hotels, as designated accommodations for quarantine purposes. However, on Sunday, the management of Chida International Hotel, Abuja, said it was not part of the arrangement due to the non-availability of space. “It is pertinent to state that at present, Chida International, Abuja, is not part of the arrangement to accommodate evacuated Nigerians from abroad, though we were contacted by the ministry but could not proceed with the plan becau...
Edo screens 104,186 persons for coronavirus, discharges one, contact traces 689 others
The Edo State Government, as part of efforts to contain the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, has ramped up ongoing screening and testing exercise across the state’s 18 Local Government Areas (LGAs), screening over 104,186 persons, testing about 704 residents and contact tracing over 689 others who have had various degrees of contacts with confirmed cases. Commissioner for Health, Dr Patrick Okundia, who disclosed this to journalists in Benin City, also announced the discharge of one more COVID-19 patient, who has tested negative twice for the virus and cleared from the state’s isolation centres. According to him, the new discharge brings the number of patients successfully managed and discharged from the state’s isolation facilities to 13. Okundia, however, reassured that the remaining cas...
Post-coronavirus economy will be tech driven – Kwara governor
Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on Saturday said that the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the country to come to terms with the reality of migrating to a full IT driven economy. The governor made the call when he joined the government-backed virtual digital training for youths in the state amid a call on participants to compete to evolve with homegrown technological solutions to local problems. At least 3,195 young people are involved in the digital training which is supported by the Grow with Google and Wootlab Foundation. Called K-Power, the initiative is a component of the four-layer state social investment programme. AbdulRazaq said the lockdown arising from the COVID-19 pandemic again confirmed that the country must come to term with deploying technology in all facets of life...
UN: Somalia faces dire threats from conflict, natural disasters, coronavirus
The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees is appealing for strong International support to help millions of Somalis facing a growing number of catastrophic threats from conflict, natural disasters and the potential spread of COVID-19. More than 220,000 Somalis have fled their homes this year because of drought, heavy flooding and increased violence and atrocities by al-Shabab militants. This brings the total number of those forced from their homes in the country to 2.6 million. The U.N. refugee agency UNHCR says the conflict and natural and climate-related disasters are crippling the country’s economy and threatening the safety and welfare of the displaced Somalis. It warns impending desert locust swarms, which have been creating havoc across parts of East Africa, could destroy much of the n...
Rivers inaugurates three coronavirus testing machines at state university teaching hospital
In its determination to stem the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the state, the Rivers State Government Friday evening inaugurated three PCR machines at its Covid-19 testing centre at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital, Port Harcourt. The Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the Teaching Hospital, Dr. Friday Aaron, said Shell Petroleum Development Company donated two of the PCR machines to the state government while the third came from Total E and P. He said: “This evening we are here to celebrate, because it has been our goal to get a testing centre in Rivers State. Today, I am happy to announce that we can now do Covid-19 tests at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital courtesy of the Rivers State Government ably led by our own Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike. “We also tha...
Governor Sanwo-Olu: Success of easing lockdown depends on residents’ compliance
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has decried the non-compliance to measures to contain the Coronavirus pandemic by some residents of the state. Governor Sanwo-Olu who stated this on Saturday while giving the 11th Update on Coronavirus in the state, reiterated that the success of the gradual easing of the lockdown is dependent upon the compliance of Lagos residents. He said that the state government “will not hesitate to review the terms of this easing if we continue to see evidence that Lagosians are determined to flout the rules. “The continued maintenance of this easing is only guaranteed when people consistently comply.” While also describing as unacceptable, the poor compliance level with the COVID-19 protocols, including physical and social distancing, wearing of face masks, no...
Rivers governor splashes N5 million on community which reported unlawful entry of cattle, bearers
Governor Nyesom Wike on Friday rewarded Rumuigbo community, Obio Akpor Local Government Area, Rivers state, with N5 million for providing information which resulted in the arrest of trucks, cattle, and passengers who sneaked into Port Harcourt in breach of the state’s COVID-19 restriction orders. The Governor in a Friday broadcast on state of his administration’s fight against coronavirus also vented frustration on perceived Federal Government (FG) and security agents sabotage of efforts at containing the pandemic in the state. He said, “I commend Rumuigbo community vigilante for rising to the challenge, as any responsible community should do, by intercepting a lorry-load of livestock with 50 persons who illegally entered the State in violation of the lockdown orders. For this show of cour...
