Madagascar‘s new herbal solution for coronavirus has really made the headlines lately. Remember, the virus outbreak first began in Wuhan, China, before spreading to many other parts of the world earlier in 2020.
Globally, all countries are very desperate about creating an effective solution to the covid-19 pandemic and consequently reopen their economies many of which have crashed because of a strict restriction to movement earlier adopted.
Incidentally, the coronavirus infections and death rates have increased in Nigeria, prompting the health ministry to look in the direction of well-researched options for treating already infected persons.
The Sun Newspaper reported that the Federal Government did not make a request for Madagascar’s herbal remedy for COVID-19, but that the government of Madagascar wilfully doled out the herbal remedy to African states out of goodwill.
Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Coronavirus, Boss Mustapha, made this known during Thursday’s briefing with the media. Boss Mustapha had earlier in the week remarked that Nigeria’s president had given an order for the airlift of Nigeria’s share of the herbal drink dispatched for onward delivery through Guinea Bissau.
Nigerian Producers of Herbal Remedy
He noted the acceptance of the herbal remedy from Madagascar did not mean that local researchers and scientists were not good enough.
He also took the occasion as an opportunity to encourage local producers for coronavirus and other health challenges to go through authorized channels with statutory responsibilities for giving government approval, and not present such to the PTF.
The newspaper also reported Boss Mustapha saying Nigeria had existing organizations such as NAFDAC created by an Act of Parliament for giving approval for the submission of herbal remedies research.
He clearly remarked that it was not the responsibility of the Taskforce to validate the research for any herbal remedy.
Also, the Premium Times reported that at a past briefing in Abuja on Thursday, Boss Mustapha remarked that Madagascar’s covid organic would be subjected to standard validation before it would be approved for consumption by the Nigerian public.
As at Thursday, Mustapha noted that Nigeria’s consignment was yet to arrive from Guinea Bissau. He remarked that was because of coronavirus-related challenges affecting the schedule of international freights.
He noted that picking the consignments were not a priority because there were other necessary things to be dealt with in an attempt to minimize the virus spread. However, he said the covid organic consignment for each West African country was in Guinea Bissau and that Nigeria was still making efforts to airlift them.
The Vanguard Newspaper reported that on Thursday, the officials of the PTF said that strategies had been devised to restructure Nigeria’s response to coronavirus, saying recent observation of increased infection and death rates suggested there was the need for tactical changes.
Plant Extract in Madagascar’s Herbal Drink Available in Nigeria
In a related development, The Punch Newspaper reported that during a press briefing by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 on Monday, May 11, 2020; the Minister of Health, Dr. Ehanire, stated that the Artemisia annua plant extract in Madagascar’s covid-19 solution could also be sourced locally.
The minister said samples of the said plant would be obtained from Madagascar with the aim of doing a comparison with the ones which grow in Nigeria.
Also, he stated that the research community in Nigeria would be given samples of the Artemisia annua plant for some analytical comparison with the Nigerian strain.
Nigeria’s Food Security
Mustapha reminded law enforcement agencies that farmers were also essential workers and should be allowed access to their farms in order to grow crops and rear animals and help prevent food insecurity.
He reminded journalists that when a strict restriction on movement was previously implemented, efforts were made to ensure that specific economic activities relating to food production and distribution were excluded.
He noted that we were in the planting season and Nigeria could not afford to stop farmers from going to their farms.
