House Directs NCDC to Establish Disease Surveillance System in Federal Unity Colleges

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

The House of Representatives has called on the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to establish and implement a structured disease surveillance system within all federal unity colleges to ensure early detection and rapid response to infectious disease outbreaks.

It also called on the Federal Ministry of Education to take immediate and decisive measures to strengthen health and safety protocols in all federal unity colleges, with particular attention to addressing the situation at King’s College.

The resolutions of the House followed the adoption of a motion moved at the plenary on Wednesday by Hon. Akin Rotimi.

Moving the motion, Rotimi expressed deep concern over the outbreak of diphtheria in the boarding house of King’s College, Victoria Island Annexe, a Federal Government-owned institution, which has regrettably resulted in the demise of a 12-year-old student and the hospitalisation of several others.

He explained that from week 19 of 2022 to week four of 2025, there were 24,804 confirmed cases of diphtheria across 25 states in Nigeria according to data from the NCDC Weekly Diphtheria Situation Report of 26th January, 2025.

Rotimi expressed concern that out of the 24,804 confirmed cases reported in the NCDC Weekly Diphtheria Situation Report of 26th January, 2025, there were 1,269 fatalities across 18 states, with some states having as high as 80-83 per cent Case Fatality Rate (CFR).

He also expressed worry that this unfortunate incident exposes significant lapses in infection prevention and control (IPC) measures in federal unity colleges and underscores the Ministry of Education’s responsibility to ensure the health and safety of students in its institutions.

The lawmaker acknowledged the prompt intervention of the Lagos State Government in activating an Emergency Operations Committee (EOC), isolating and treating affected students, and initiating a mass vaccination campaign to contain the spread of the disease.

The House urged “the Federal Ministry of Education to take immediate and decisive measures to strengthen health and safety protocols in all federal unity colleges, with particular attention to addressing the situation at King’s College.

“Mandate the House Committees on Health and Basic Education to engage with relevant agencies, including the NCDC, to assess and enhance infection prevention and emergency response measures in federal schools.

“Call upon the Federal Ministry of Health, the NPHCDA, and the NCDC to intensify diphtheria vaccination and awareness campaigns in schools across the country to prevent future outbreaks”.

It also directed the Federal Ministry of Education to undertake an urgent and comprehensive review of health infrastructure in unity colleges and establish a clear and effective framework for responding to infectious disease outbreaks in educational institutions.

The House also mandated the NCDC to establish and implement a structured disease surveillance system within all federal unity colleges to ensure early detection and rapid response to infectious disease outbreaks.