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BREAKTHROUGH: Nigeria develops test kit for COVID-19

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SunriseNigeria July 10, 202

The Nigerian government has recorded a significant breakthrough in the fight against the coronavirus, as it has launched RNASwift, a diagnostic kit, for the identification of the causative agent of COVID-19.

Announcing this at a media conference on Tuesday, Alex Akpa, Director-General of National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), said the RNASwift test kit, developed by his Agency, is an indigenous diagnostic test kit designed, developed and validated in Nigeria for the identification of the causal agent –SARS-Cov-2– which causes COVID-19.

According to him, the RNASwift test kit will not only revolutionalise Africa’s PCR-based COVID-19 testing, but also expand the capacity by at least 50 times.

He further said newly developed kit will equally reduce cost by over 500 percent as compared to the conventional kit in use.

Prof. Alex Uwadiegwu Akpa
DG, NABDA

“This meets the demands of the Test Africa Initiative. The kits will be produced in Nigeria, which is great news considering that it will enable preference to be given to the testing needs of Africa,” he said.

“The need for the invention was conceived by the request from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD), to test five million farmers and farmhands.

“This was to ensure that our food security chain was not compromised by COVID-19.”

He described the diagnostic kit is “very accurate and sensitive’’ and competes favourably with conventional and commercially available kits for the diagnosis of COVID-19.

“This is in addition to a careful choice of reagents that are human and environmentally friendly in the development of the protocol for the diagnostic kit,” Akpa said.

“In fact, the attributes of the RNASwift kits make it a game-changer in the design and production of diagnostic kits for infectious diseases in the face of an epidemic or a pandemic.”

The Director-General said the project was made possible by the scientific collaboration between NABDA, Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), and Nigerian Institute for Medical Research (NIMR).

Speaking at the event minister of science and technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu said he had tasked Nigerian scientists to come up with a solution with a N36 million pledge.

Dr Ogbonnaya Onu
Minister of Science and Technology

Onu described Nigerians as being creative and talented enough to develop homegrown solutions to major challenges confronting the country, Africa and the world, with the RNASwift test kit as an example.

“Today, the RNASwift extraction kit developed by Nigerian scientists has capacity at an accurate, sensitive and affordable cost to detect SARS-Cov2, the causative agent of COVID-19,” he said

“With the RNASwift test kit, we are going to test five million farmers, and the new test kit will reduce cost drastically.”

Other African countries stand to benefit from the test kits owing to its low cost, he said.

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Economy

Despite Earlier Apprehensions, Senators Agree on Funding for Development Commissions

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Despite Senators’ division over new regional development commissions’ funding arrangement, Lawmakers in the Red Chamber on Thursday finally agreed on the source of funding for the newly created zonal development commissions.

The arguments had unfolded as the Senate and House of Representatives moved forward with legislation to establish these commissions, which were also stripped of operational immunity for their boards and executives.

The disagreement emerged during the clause-by-clause consideration of the South-South Development Commission Establishment Bill 2024, which serves as the structural template for other zonal commissions.
Central to the debate was the Senate Committee on Special Duties’ recommendation that 15% of statutory allocations from member states be directed toward funding these commissions.

Several Senators, including Yahaya Abdullahi (PDP, Kebbi North), Wasiu Eshinlokun (APC, Lagos East), and Seriake Dickson (PDP, Bayelsa West), voiced concerns over the proposed funding model.

 

 

Senator Abdullahi warned that the provision could lead to legal challenges from state governments, as no state would willingly allow its statutory allocation to be reduced.

“Mr President, distinguished colleagues, the 15% of statutory allocations of member states recommended for funding their zonal development commissions would be litigated against by some state governments,” Abdullahi said.

Seeking to clarify the matter, the Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin, quickly intervened.

He explained that the 15% allocation would not involve a direct deduction from the states’ funds.

He said, “Mr President, distinguished colleagues, the 15% of statutory allocation of member states, recommended for funding of Zonal Development Commissions by the federal government, is not about deduction at all.

“What is recommended, as contained in the report presented to us by the Committee on Special Duties and being considered by the Senate now, is that 15% of the statutory allocation of member states in a zonal development commission would, by way of calculation by the federal government, be used to fund the commission from the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

“Each state has a monthly statutory allocation, 15% of which, as contained in this report being considered, will be calculated by the federal government and removed from the Consolidated Revenue Fund for funding of their Development Commission.”

Despite Barau’s explanation, several senators remained unconvinced and expressed their desire to contribute to the debate.

However, Senate President Godswill Akpabio stepped in, asserting that the provision was constitutionally sound.

“We don’t need to debate whether 15% of statutory allocations from member states in a commission would be deducted,” Akpabio said, citing Section 162(4) of the 1999 Constitution, which grants the National Assembly the authority to appropriate funds from either the Consolidated Revenue Fund or the Federation Account.

“Fifteen percent of the statutory allocation has been recommended by the Senate, and by extension, the National Assembly, for funding these zonal development commissions. Anyone who wishes to challenge that in court is free to do so,” he added.

Akpabio then called for a voice vote, and the majority voted in favour of the provision.

In his remarks following the passage of the consolidated bills, Akpabio expressed gratitude to the Senators for their efforts in finalising the Zonal Development Commissions.

He noted that these commissions would provide a foundation for the newly created Ministry of Regional Development.

The bills passed include the South-South Development Commission Establishment Bill 2024, the North West Development Commission Act (Amendment) Bill 2024, and the South-East Development Commission Act (Amendment) Bill 2024.

The South West Development Commission Establishment Bill 2024 and the North Central Development Commission Establishment Bill 2024 were previously passed.

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Uncategorized

Tinubu Seeks Senate Confirmation for Seven Ministerial Nominees

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By Elizabeth Okwe and Ojone Grace Odaudu

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday urged the Senate to screen for confirmation, seven nominees for appointment as ministers.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio read President Tinubu’s letter of request during plenary.

The ministerial nominees for Senate’s consideration and approval are, Dr Nentawe Yilwatda (Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction); Muhammadu Dingyadi (Labour & Employment); Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu (State Foreign Affairs), and Dr Jumoke Oduwole (Industry, Trade and Investment).

Others are, Idi Mukhtar Maiha (Livestock Development), Yusuf Ata (State, Housing and Urban Development), and Dr. Suwaiba Ahmad (State Education).

Akpabio referred the nominees to the Committee of the Whole for further legislative work as soon as possible

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Tinubu Fires More Ministers

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By Elizabeth Okwe and Ojone Grace Odaudu

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has fired at least five ministers

The ministers are

1. Barr. Uju-Ken Ohanenye, Minister of Women Affairs

2. Lola Ade-John, Minister of Tourism

3. Prof Tahir Mamman, Minister of Education

4. Abdullahi Muhammad Gwarzo, Minister of State, Housing and Urban Development

5. Dr. Jamila Bio Ibrahim, Minister of Youth Development.

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