Epidemic preparedness in West Africa must move beyond laboratories and hospitals and place communities at the core of response systems, the head of Nigeria’s Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has said.
Speaking at the plenary session “Putting Communities First: Engagement in Epidemic Preparedness” on day three of the ECOWAS Lassa Fever International Conference in Abidjan, at the ECOWAS Lassa Fever International Conference in Abidjan, Dr Jide Idris described epidemics as “social events,” warning that scientific advances will fail if the people most affected are left out of planning and decision-making.
“Epidemics begin and end in communities,” Dr Idris told delegates. “Yet, paradoxically, the very people most at risk are often the last to be engaged in preparedness.”
He pointed to shortcomings in conventional systems, including over-centralised structures, weak communication models, and a failure to tailor responses to local cultures. These gaps, he argued, fuel mistrust, resistance, and unequal access to lifesaving resources.
A Survivor’s Testimony
The plenary also heard from Ige Adejoke Olajumoke, a Nigerian woman who survived Lassa fever in 2018 while caring for her six-week-old baby.
She recalled how she first began feeling unwell after her baby was discharged from hospital following a brief admission. Initially, she assumed it was malaria and treated herself accordingly. But as her symptoms worsened, including chest pain, she sought care at a hospital, where she was treated for both typhoid and malaria.
“When the symptoms would not go away, I returned to the Federal Medical Centre, where blood tests confirmed I had Lassa fever,” she said. Her baby and mother also later tested positive. Because her breast milk tested positive for the virus, she was advised to stop breastfeeding and place her child on alternative feeding.
The illness, she said, took a toll on her mental health. She missed out on a job opportunity and wrestled with guilt over her baby’s and mother’s infections.
Though all three eventually recovered without complications, she described the stigma that followed her diagnosis and her reluctance to disclose it.
She also remembered the solidarity among patients: “We were treated like family. We motivated each other to keep going. But too often the focus is on numbers, forgetting that behind every case are people and families.”
Now an advocate, Ms Olajumoke works with communities to raise awareness about prevention and to build trust in clinical trials for Lassa fever and other emerging infectious diseases. She said misinformation and vaccine hesitancy remain major challenges.
“Seeking healthcare early for Lassa fever can help you recover quickly and reduce complications,” she urged.
Her testimony, Dr Idris noted, underscored the importance of placing community voices at the centre of epidemic preparedness. “Survivors and trusted leaders are key to building resilience,” he added.
A call for change
Dr Idris urged governments and regional bodies to decentralise preparedness, giving communities decision-making power and resources to respond effectively. His proposals included:
- Shared responsibility: empower local councils and sub-national structures to lead preparedness.
- True partnership: move beyond token consultations towards joint planning, community-led risk mapping and co-created policies.
- Dialogue, not directives: build two-way communication, sharing data with communities while listening to local concerns and intelligence.
- Equity and inclusion: ensure women, youth, nomadic populations and people with disabilities are represented in epidemic response structures.
“Preparedness thrives when it is strategic, inclusive, and rooted in communities,” he said. “Putting communities first is not charity — it is strategy. Health security begins and ends with people.”
