Government Approves N45.08 Billion Airport Biosecurity System

The Nigerian Government has approved N45.08 billion for a national biosecurity and disease response system at five international airports, as the country strengthens its capacity to detect and contain infectious diseases at its borders.

The Minister of Health and Coordinating Minister of Social Welfare, Ali Pate, announced the approval on Wednesday after the Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the State House in Abuja.

He also defended the government’s decision to pay people quarantined over Nigeria’s recent Ebola case N100,000 weekly, explaining that the allowance would encourage them to comply with isolation requirements and reduce the risk of community transmission.

Read More : Atiku Faults Government’s ₦70,000 Transport Allowance

The 20-year public-private partnership (PPP) project, awarded to Biohealth Consortium, will cover the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano, Port Harcourt International Airport and Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu.

Pate said the project had been in development for two years and was designed to address vulnerabilities in Nigeria’s border health surveillance system. He noted that more than 18 million passengers travel through the country’s airports annually.

He explained that the COVID-19 pandemic had highlighted the need for technology-driven systems capable of identifying and responding to infectious disease threats before they spread.

According to the minister, stronger airport surveillance would protect public health while helping to prevent outbreaks from disrupting economic activities.

He explained, “The Federal Executive Council took another step to modernise our biosecurity system at the point of entry. It approved the implementation of the full business case for a national biosecurity and response system at five of our international airports through a public-private partnership.

“The council approved the implementation at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos, Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport here in Abuja, Malam Aminu Kanu International Airport in Kano, the Port Harcourt International Airport, the Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu, through a public-private partnership arrangement in favor of Biohealth Consortium, a consortium of partners, in the sum of N45.08bn over a period of 20 years, this was a project that had been in preparation for two years, over the last two weeks, I think you realise the significance of enhancing biosecurity at our port of entry.

“Since COVID, we have known that there are significant vulnerabilities in terms of public health threats crossing borders, and the need for coordinated, technology-driven systems for early warning, detection, and response to emerging infectious disease threats.

“Improving biosecurity at the points of entry, particularly at the airports, is so critical to our health security, not only for public health but also for economic security, because when pathogens come and disrupt, economic activities also suffer.”

Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare Muhammad Ali Pate. Credit: Premuim Times.

The new system will use aircraft wastewater surveillance to detect pathogens carried on incoming flights, alongside air and surface sampling equipment. It will also deploy surveillance technologies to screen cargo and baggage for potential biological threats.

A national surveillance operations centre will coordinate real-time monitoring, data integration and emergency responses. Portable laboratories will also be installed at entry points to support on-site testing.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Port Health Services, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Immigration Service and National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) will participate in the system.

Pate said the technology would improve coordination among agencies, strengthen evidence-based decisions and help Nigeria meet international health regulations.

Under the agreement, the private partner will finance, design, build, deploy, operate and maintain the system throughout the 20-year concession period. The government will provide policy, institutional and regulatory oversight, after which the assets will revert to federal ownership.

The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission reviewed and endorsed the concession arrangement, according to the minister.

Every year, we have upwards of 18 million passengers crossing our borders through the airports.

“The implementation of this system will support evidence-based decision-making, improve inter-agency coordination, compliance with international health regulations, and our ability to deploy more advanced technologies beyond what we currently have through the existing public health services and the various agencies that are involved,” he said.

The Minister added that “The structure is a design, finance, build, operate, and transfer. And under this arrangement, the private sector partner will be responsible for designing, financing, building, deploying, operating, and maintaining the structure during the concession period.

“While the Government will provide necessary policy, institutional, and regulatory support and oversight to ensure that our national objectives are met, an open expiry of the concession. The system and the assets will revert to the control and ownership of the Government in accordance with the terms of the concession agreement, as reviewed and endorsed by the ICRC, which is the regulator of such public-private partnerships.

“Under the concession structure, the private partner will design, finance, build, deploy, operate, and maintain the system for the duration of the 20-year period. The Federal Government will provide policy, institutional, and regulatory support and oversight. At expiration, all assets will revert to federal ownership under terms reviewed and endorsed by the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission.”

He said the five airports were selected based on passenger traffic, exposure to biosecurity risks and geographical distribution.

Pate also highlighted the timing of the approval, noting that Nigeria had maintained heightened surveillance at its entry points for five months during the Democratic Republic of Congo Ebola outbreak without detecting a case until the first confirmed infection was reported on October 19 and 20.

Defending the weekly N100,000 allowance for people placed under quarantine following the recent Ebola case, Pate described the payment as a targeted measure to secure compliance and prevent the virus from spreading into communities.

He explained that contacts who are asked to remain in isolation may depend on daily earnings to support themselves and their families. Without financial assistance, some could leave quarantine to work or visit public places, potentially exposing others to infection.

The minister said the authorities had identified and quarantined people who came into contact with the patient after she developed symptoms, including those who encountered her at a clinic or hospital.

He warned that allowing contacts to leave isolation could undermine containment efforts.

“Our goal is to contain it. We don’t want to be in a situation whereby we have community transmission. The purpose of our measures is to ensure that her primary contacts, those she met once she became symptomatic, at the clinic, in the hospital, are all identified but also quarantined.

“If they evade quarantine, they go to market. They can transmit it to innocent people out there. So it is so vital that we get their compliance. Many of them, for instance, somebody who may have driven her from one place to the other, is a contact. They have a livelihood, and you ask them to stay in quarantine. They have a family,” he said.

Pate stressed that the allowance was intended for the current containment situation and would not be applicable if community transmission occurred.

He contrasted Nigeria’s approach with the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where widespread transmission and thousands of cases had created a different public health challenge.

The minister said authorities moved quickly to identify and isolate contacts after confirming the Nigerian case. Some were initially placed under home isolation before being transferred to designated facilities for closer monitoring.

Contacts must remain in quarantine for 21 days, reflecting Ebola’s incubation period of two to 21 days, he explained.

The arrangement also allows health officials to trace additional contacts quickly if anyone in quarantine tests positive, helping to limit further spread.

Pate said the government was taking precautions against further infections, while acknowledging that additional cases could still emerge.

“They need to be quarantined for 21 days. Ebola has an incubation period of between two and 21 days, and we want to be sure that they did not get exposed because they have a history of contact with her,” Pate said.

Pate added that keeping contacts in close proximity served a secondary purpose: enabling rapid secondary contact tracing should any of them test positive.

“If one of them is discovered to have contracted the virus, then because they are at hand, we can quickly circumscribe their own contacts so that it doesn’t spread.

“We are not taking any chances. We may succeed, or there may be an unfortunate one or two cases that may be affected. But if that is the case, we will rapidly get on top of it,” he explained further.