Ebola: FG pays contacts N100,000 weekly for quarantine — Minister

The Nigerian government is paying N100,000 weekly to individuals who have been in contact with the country's only confirmed Ebola case, as announced by Health Minister Prof. Ali Pate following a Federal Executive Council meeting. This financial incentive aims to ensure compliance with quarantine directives and prevent potential community transmission.

Pate emphasized that the strategy is designed to protect the public by securing the involvement of primary contacts of the individual who became symptomatic at a clinic and hospital. He highlighted that many contacts have a livelihood and family responsibilities, making the quarantine challenging but essential. The minister described the single confirmed case as a "significant wake-up call" and stressed that the government's primary objective is containment before the virus spreads to the general population.

He warned that the financial incentive strategy would become ineffective if the outbreak escalates to community transmission, as seen in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where thousands of cases and widespread transmission have made targeted quarantine impractical. Pate contrasted the government's containment strategy with the DRC's approach, emphasizing that Nigeria's strategy is more effective due to the limited number of cases and the ability to closely monitor contacts.

This approach also serves an early-detection purpose, allowing the government to quickly identify and isolate any positive cases to prevent further spread.