COVID-19: FG inaugurates committee to find herbal cure
- A committee on COVID-19 herbal remedies has been inaugurated by the federal government
- The aim of the committee is to develop a home-grown remedy and vaccine to tackle the deadly COVID-19
- Members of the ministerial committee include scientists and fellows of the Nigerian Academy of Science
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Following the immediate need to tackle the novel coronavirus, the federal government has inaugurated a committee on COVID-19 herbal remedies and natural compounds.
Ogbonnaya Onu, the minister of science and technology, said the panel was set up in a bid to find a home-grown solution to the viral disease, Daily Trust reports.
According to Onu, there was an urgent need to develop a home-grown remedy and vaccine to tackle the deadly pandemic as it remained a threat to the health of Nigerians and the national economy.
The minister who inaugurated the committee noted that members include fellows of the Nigerian Academy of Science and eminent scientists.
Source: UGC
Onu said the committee's focus will be to authenticate claims by researchers, scientists, and traditional medical practitioners of cure and herbal remedy for the deadly virus.
The minister went on to urge the committee to scrutinize and evaluate all claims and identify the remedies with the brightest prospects for providing protection and healing to affected persons or those at the risk of contracting the dreaded disease.
“I have no doubt that the discovery of a cure for COVID-19 in Nigeria would enhance the standing of our dear nation in the comity of nations.
“It will also accord Nigerian scientists deserved recognition and help regenerate foreign exchange earnings for the nation as well as enable a knowledge economy that will facilitate economic growth and sustainable national development,” he said.
It would be recalled that the federal government had said it won't rule out the possibility of using local herbs to tackle the novel coronavirus as countries across the world divert towards local alternatives.
Speaking during the presidential task force briefing on Covid-19 on Tuesday, May 5, Osagie Ehanire, minister of health, gave the flashes of hope.
He, however, stated that should the federal government look the way of the herbal cure, Nigerian Institute for Pharmac'eutical Research and Development must first certify their efficacy.
Ehanire also said that tests were ongoing on the effectiveness of chloroquine to cure the Covid-19 infection.
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Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) said it will collaborate with indigenous scientists working on Covid-19 vaccine or drugs.
The director-general of NAFDAC, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, said the agency’s interventions would allow for documentation of such initiatives for global recording as potential vaccines or drugs that are in process or safety testing.
She said that the agency would open its doors to the team of Nigerian scientists who declared they are working on a vaccine for the infectious disease.
Coronavirus: Nigeria's health minister speaks on chloroquine as cure for COVID-19 | Legit TV
Source: Legit.ng
