Nigeria faces a real threat of Ebola spreading through its airports. The Bundibugyo strain is ravaging the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda right now.
Over 220 people have died from nearly 1,000 suspected cases. The World Health Organisation warns the outbreak is moving faster than local response teams can handle.
No approved vaccines exist for this particular strain. Nigeria's health authorities have rated the risk of importation as "high."
Yet airport checks remain dangerously weak. Reporters who visited both Abuja and Lagos terminals found virtually no screening at departure gates.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) promised aggressive surveillance measures. Their assurances haven't matched what's happening on the ground.
At Murtala Muhammed International Airport's Terminal 2 in Lagos, departing passengers walked through without temperature checks Wednesday morning. Port Health Services staff were nowhere to be found.
Intending travellers cleared their counters freely. Nobody asked about their health status or recent movements.
Sarah Jacob, preparing to board an EgyptAir flight, noticed the gap immediately. "There were no health questionnaires about recent travel history or virus exposure," she told reporters.
Jacob had flown through other countries recently. Those nations required legal declarations of travel history before departure.
"I am surprised that in Nigeria, there is still nothing like that in place," she added. Her frustration reflected a broader concern among travellers.
Abuja's Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport showed the same problem. Airline staff confirmed boarding was proceeding without any biosecurity checks whatsoever.
One unnamed airline worker spoke candidly about the contrast with COVID-19. "During the pandemic, we deployed lots of equipment and passengers faced multi-layered checks before flying," the staff member said.
"Now we're doing nothing different. There's no health worker on the ground and I haven't seen any heightened surveillance lately," he noted.
Arriving passengers tell a different story. Port Health teams are actually working at international arrival wings.
The split approach creates a dangerous blind spot. Departing travellers — who might carry the virus to other nations — face zero screening.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) issued its "high risk" warning weeks ago. Yet airport operations have barely changed since then.
Public health experts worry the lax departures protocol could export Ebola beyond West Africa. Airlines continue moving passengers without basic health profiling.
FAAN hasn't responded to questions about why departing screening remains absent. The authority's earlier assurances now ring hollow to travellers and health workers alike.
Across the continent, Hantavirus is also being monitored in South Africa and Zimbabwe. Nigeria can't afford to let multiple threats slip through undetected.
Airport officials must act now. Every flight represents a potential vector for disease spread.
