Nigeria to review COVID-19 response investments at national close-out meeting

Nigeria is set to convene a national close-out meeting on June 25 in Abuja to assess the impact of the COVID-19 Response Mechanism (C19RM) investments. The National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), in partnership with the Global Fund and other key organizations, will host the event.

The meeting aims to reflect on the achievements, lessons learned, and the lasting effects of the C19RM grant, which was active from 2021 to 2025. Representatives from the Federal Ministry of Health, state governments, development partners, civil society organizations, and healthcare workers will attend. These stakeholders played crucial roles in implementing the grant.

The Global Fund's C19RM was established to help countries combat the COVID-19 pandemic while reinforcing health systems and protecting progress against HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria. In Nigeria, these funds supported various initiatives to enhance public health preparedness and response. This included improvements in disease surveillance, laboratory systems, infection prevention and control, oxygen infrastructure, cold-chain systems, healthcare workforce capacity, and emergency response mechanisms.

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We learned through COVID-19 that being prepared for one emergency isn’t just about that emergency, it’s about being prepared for any emergency. C19RM investments in emergency response mechanisms, supply chain resilience, and rapid deployment capacity are now embedded in our health systems planning and programming.

NACA Director-General Temitope Ilori highlighted the broader implications of pandemic preparedness. "We learned through COVID-19 that being prepared for one emergency isn’t just about that emergency, it’s about being prepared for any emergency," Ilori stated. "C19RM investments in emergency response mechanisms, supply chain resilience, and rapid deployment capacity are now embedded in our health systems planning and programming."

The close-out meeting will feature presentations on key achievements, implementation insights, innovations, and best practices. It will also include stakeholder discussions, panel sessions, and a documentary showcasing the human impact and legacy of the C19RM investment across Nigeria. Tajudeen Ibrahim, executive secretary of Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) Nigeria, emphasized the collaborative nature of the response, noting that the grant demonstrated the power of effective partnership and country ownership in addressing a public health emergency. He added that the investments have strengthened health systems and pandemic preparedness, benefiting Nigeria for years to come.

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The C19RM grant demonstrated the power of effective partnership, positioning, coordination, engagement, oversight and country ownership in responding to a public health emergency. Beyond supporting Nigeria’s COVID-19 response, the investments have strengthened critical health systems and facilitated pandemic preparedness and response capacities that will continue to benefit the country for years to come. As we close this chapter, our focus must remain on sustaining these gains and leveraging the lessons learned to build a more resilient health system for all Nigerians.