Friday 27 February 2015

Pastor Daniel Olukoya's Mountain Top University



One of the newly approved private universities in Nigeria is the Mountain Top University.

The proprietors of the university is the Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries (MFM), a Christian, Evangelical, Pentecostal and inter-denominational missionary organization, which is a sub-set of the overall vision received in August 1977 by Dr. Daniel Kolawole Olukoya, the founder and General Overseer of MFM Ministries worldwide.

MFM began as a church in 1989 and is thus one of the youngest pentecostal churches in Nigeria to run/own a university.

When Dr.Olukoya was born , little did his parents know that they had taken delivery of an exceptional child ordained by God to fulfill a destiny that would in turn, positively affect the destiny of others. And in pursuit of that destiny, Dr. Olukoya laid down an academic blueprint whose pedigree remains outstanding. At Saint John’s CAC Primary School, Akure in Ondo State, and Saint Jude’s primary School, Ebute Metta, Lagos where he completed his primary education, excellence was his watch word. Rather than occupy himself with exuberance that was a common feature among the, youths, he developed a passion for God.

Dr. Daniel Olukoya’s academic profile took a leap while at Methodist Boys’ High School, Lagos , where he graduated with Grade One Distinction and was the best student in his set. Not one known to rest on his oars, he took his academic exploits to the prestigious University of Lagos and, as would be expected, the genius in him proved that all earlier outstanding academic results were no fluke, as he graduated with a first class honours degree. In fact it was the first from the department since the university was established in 1962.

Dr. Olukoya’s thirst for more academic laurels found expression at the University of Reading, UK, where, with a Commonwealth scholarship, he studied for a PhD in Molecular Genet­ics, which was completed in record time, making him probably the first Nigerian to obtain a Ph.D. in this subject area. With such an intimidating academic resume! it was only natural that opportunities would beckon. But not even the pressure to stay back in England could sway him from returning to Nigeria.

His first port of call on arrival was the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), Yaba. He was a lecturer as well as external examiner to a number of Nigerian universities, among them the University of Lagos , UNILAG and university of Benin, UNIBEN.

Dr. olukoya is on record as having been the first scientist to establish an indigenous Molecular Biology and Biotechnology laboratory in Nigeria. One important contribution by Dr. Olukoya to biotechnology and health care delivery is the creation of a new type of Pap (Ogi), named Dogik, a weaning food that has improved nutritional qualities that can control diarrhea. The laboratory also ranks among the first to done genes in Nigeria.

Dr. Olukoya has supervised over 20 Ph.D. students, most of whom are doing well in their chosen fields. As a researcher, he has over 80 scientific publications to his credit. Notwithstanding his exploits on the academic turf, he de­votes much of his time to God through preaching, delivering papers at seminars, singing etc.

That Dr. Olukoya would become a mighty tool in the hands of God to serve as a vehicle of deliverance for his generation manifested itself in 1989, when Mountain of Fire and Miracles Minis­tries was given birth to in his sitting room at Yaba, with 24 worshippers. And like the story of the acorn seed that metamorphosed into the great oak tree with several branches providing nests to all birds of varied proportions, MFM has thousands of branches spread across Nigeria , Africa and Asia . A huge percentage of branches are also located in the United States and Europe .

The Ministry is noted for its unique, powerful prayers that are fast redefining the major strategic input that puts the devil and his cohorts in the most bemused of confusion.

Absolute holiness is preached within and outside as spiritual prerequisite for heaven.

In addition to his over 80 scientific publications, Dr Olukoya has written more than double that number of spiritual books, 150 of them, most of which are bestsellers.

PRAYER RAIN, a prayer manual which has become a companion for many Christians across several denominations, has sold millions of copies. Besides, Dr. Olukoya has 70 Christian songs that he has composed.

Dr. Olukoya venturing into university education does not come as a surprise to many given his pedigree.

The Mountain Top University is located at the MFM Prayer City, Mowe, Ogun State along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. The facilities of the university have been ready for about 4 years while awaiting government approval which thankfully came a few days ago.

The Mountain Top University has elected to adopt the nomenclature "College" rather than “Faculty” as practiced in contemporary universities abroad as well as the newly established ones in Nigeria. 

At full capacity, MTU will have at least six (6) Undergraduate Colleges and a Postgraduate School.


Dr Olukoya is happily married to pastor Shade and both have a son.

Acknowledgement : Church gist , drolukoya's wordpress

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Thursday 26 February 2015

Nigeria Approves Nine New Private Universities



Nigeria has approved the issuance of operating licenses to nine new private universities .

The new private universities are; Augustine University, Ilara, Lagos State; Chrisland University, Owode, Ogun State; Christopher University, Mowe, Ogun State; Hallmark University, Ijebu Itele, Ogun State; Kings University, Ode Omu, Osun State; Michael and Cecilia Ibru University, Orode, Delta State; Mountain Top University, Ogun State, Ritman University, Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State and Summit University, Offa, Kwara State.

Nigeria has one of the oldest, biggest and most comprehensive university education system in Africa. Since 1948 when the first university was established till 1979, university education was on the exclusive list of the government, thereby leaving the establishment, funding and management in the hand of the federal government that has the exclusive right. However, in 1979, the constitution was amended and university education was now put on the concurrent list of the government, which means that both federal and state government can now establish and own its university. It was from this time that various states started signifying intention to establish their own state universities named after them. It later became evidently clearer to the federal government that, funding university education effectively may be difficult for the federal government alone.

As a result of this, in 1999, when a new democratically elected government (President Olusegun Obasanjo) was sworn in after a prolonged military rule of 16 years, the federal government immediately vested the power to receive and treat applications of establishment of private universities to the National University Commission (NUC) who will thereafter make recommendation for approval to the federal government- NUC is the highest regulatory body of universities in Nigeria. 

Out of forty (40) applications received in 1999, only 3 of them met the NUC requirement and were granted operating license. They could be referred to as the pioneer of private universities in Nigeria. They are: Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State, Babcock University, Ilisan Remo, Ogun State, and Madonna University, Okija, Anambra State.

Presently, with this latest approval, the number of private universities in Nigeria totals 60.

Wednesday 18 February 2015

FASHOLA LAUNCHES 100 NEW AIR-CONDITIONED BUSES




Over 1500 new jobs created, passengers to enjoy WIFI Internet Connection in new buses


Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola, SAN on Tuesday formally flagged off the operation of a fleet of 100 new Air-conditioned buses made possible by the partnership of the LAGBUS Asset Management Limited and one of its franchisees Metro Bus, reiterating the administration’s commitment to build a reliable and sustainable multi- modal transport system that is driven by the private sector.

The Governor who spoke at the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) Yard, Oshodi added that the purpose of the vision is clear but its ultimate goal is prosperity for the generality of the people which can only be delivered in a structured partnership with the private sector.

He added that it is only by creating opportunity for private sector to take ownership and employ people, provide services that government can really deliver the prosperity of her dreams.

While reinforcing the multi- modal objective of the state government that is boosted with the increased bus fleet, Fashola gave a status update on the various transport related projects, informing that the jetties and the terminals in Mile 2, Badore, Osborne, Ipakodo, Ibeshe are being concluded.

He stated that from just 150,000 passengers per month in 2007, the State is moving over 1.6million people every month with about 200 ferries already licensed and owned by the private sector, adding that more is yet to come.

“So what we are doing on land today is already taking place on water and what we expect to see when all of the jetties are commissioned, is extension, bigger capacity ferries financed by banks and owned by individuals and small companies and then our job really would have been done”.

“For now, there are a lot of water taxis carrying 16 to 24 passengers and there are almost 200 of them and everywhere you look on our waterways up to Ijegun- Egba you would see them. People are moving on a daily basis and a lot of employment is going on there”, he stressed.

The Governor also informed that he has approved the concessioning of the fuel supply system to all the terminals in an open and transparent manner were adverts were placed for bids and the winners shortlisted.

He added that the ferry terminals would become destination points with banking halls and all of such facilities, adding that the same facilities that would be seen at the ferry terminals when they are opened would also be seen at the rail terminals, four of which have been completed now.

“We have completed Mile 2, Orile, Alaba and Costain stations for the rail. We are heading to the fifth station in Marina and if you are driving on the Marina you would see that we are driving pillar by pillar, we are on our way, so that you can come by water, join a bus and continue your journey from Marina and may be into Victoria Island when that one starts”.

“There are seven lines for the whole of Lagos so the Master plan is ready and one by one we would connect this together. That is what is in the 2012-2025 Development Plan that we have just unveiled”, he added.

He explained that the BRT system was all about empowering private sector and that the first partners were the road transport unions who owned the old buses on Lagos roads, adding that the government convinced them that if they could change their buses the face of transportation in Lagos would be changed.

“They agreed and bought the first set of buses. They took loans, paid off the loans, recapitalized but again the environment in which they invested then has changed substantially”.

Tracing the origin of the first set of BRT buses, the Governor said it was the positive spin-off of a partnership with the private sector.

“Government did not own the BRT buses; it was private sector that owned them. Our job was to build the roads, the bus shelters to maintain and manage them while they ran their buses but that environment at the time they were borrowing money at One Dollar at 118 Naira and interest rate at 10 percent has changed completely”, he added.

Fashola explained that when people see ageing buses that are not being replaced on the roads, it is not because government is not efficient but because the private sector is being incapacitated by financial regulations and economic policies of the Federal Government that are not helping them to grow.

“That is the reality because we expect them to now borrow money at N210 to One Dollar at 25 percent and we expect them to buy buses and keep them at the same prices. What kind of economy is that?”

“The Federal Government has also announced that it will increase tariff for the buses, so this is the environment in which the bus operators do business. And it is an environment we must begin to pay attention to if we must see growth in this industry”, he emphasized.

He explained that the administration in Lagos also felt that it had a role to play and that role was in setting up a government owned company, LAGBUS whose role was to provide support in the less commercially viable routes because government did not want to compete with its investors so that people who live in those areas will have some kind of support because the private sector is in business for profit.

He said as a government that was always reviewing strategies, it thought the LAGBUS company itself was going to grind to a halt if all that it did was to run on unviable routes.

“So we expanded its width and this is where the bus franchising model came to life. And we said instead of you operating this now, sell all of these routes under franchises to private investors who would bring their buses but they would brand them in your colours, put their names on it and this is the model that has thrived in many parts of the world”.

“So we would see Metro Bus which is a franchisee of LAGBUS and we would see a Diamond Bus and so many others under one franchise operating on minimum standards below which the bus system should not fall. It is a minimum of 20 buses to get a franchise because we didn’t want individual one bus owners. The Metro buses have come now with 100 buses and they say they would do more”, he explained.

The Governor who also spoke on efforts to provide road infrastructure stated that as the roads are being built, expanding the road networks, the road construction process is providing employment for numerous thousands of people from engineering companies, quantity surveying companies, quarry operators, the rocks suppliers, those who provide gravel, granite, cement, iron rod and the people who do the real hard work on a daily basis.

“Of course the banks would tell you how much they make from our borrowings every year and in that way they maintain profitability and as I have always said if Lagos State Government stops borrowing many banks would give up because I know how much is involved…and this is how an economy should function and that is why it is worrisome that lending by banks now is no longer a commercial activity based on commercial viability as the Federal Government is interfering and telling banks who they can lend to and who they cannot”.

“I don’t know what kind of economic management policies these are because slowly but gradually they are squeezing the life out of this economy taking the independence away. Why should a bank need a minister to lend to a customer if the customer’s credit is good? But that is what is happening today”.

“It is becoming difficult to get foreign exchange and to transact business. We are supposed to have remitted money now to pay for our trains but there is no foreign exchange backing for it. The foreign exchange bid transaction we used to take for granted is now wait for your turn in order to pay for legitimate international transactions and it may yet get to school fees of children”, the Governor explained.

Governor Fashola saluted the courage of the investors for venturing to dare in spite of the difficulties of the market, adding that the new investment will offer 1500 new jobs as well as provision of WIFI internet connection on board the air-conditioned buses.

In terms of facilities for maintaining the buses, the Governor stated that the State Government currently has a maintenance yard at Cappa and Bolade and is looking at the possibility of entering a structured partnership towards building a bigger maintenance yard that can service everybody’s investment and provide an opportunity.

He urged all residents of the State who have not collected their Permanent Voters Cards to go and do so and ensure that they vote rightly to ensure the continuity of policies in Lagos that brought about the new high capacity buses adding that the level of development in the State should not be entrusted to an inexperienced candidate being paraded by the opposition party.

Speaking earlier, the State Commissioner for Transportation, Mr Kayode Opeifa described the launch of the new high capacity buses as another firm demonstration of the readiness of the present administration to implement the multi- modal transportation system.

Speaking at the event, the Managing Director of the LAGBUS Asset Management Limited, Mr Babatunde Disu said the buses will start operation soon, servicing main routes namely Sango-Oshodi-Obalende- Ikorodu-Island –Epe.

He added that the 100 new Air Conditioned buses have been made possible by the partnership with a private concern called Metro Bus and would eventually have a total of 1800 buses servicing 47 routes to bring about comfort and safety as well as reduce congestion.

Mr Disu said ridership has increased by 31 per cent as 64.5 million passengers have been moved by Lagbus from 2012 to December 2015.

Also speaking, the Managing Director of the Metro Bus, Mr Niyi Oguntoyinbo said parts of the innovative facilities available on the buses are access through preloaded cards that would generate 5000 jobs for mobile agents for the pre-loaded cards.

He added that passengers can also send SMS to a number to know when the bus will arrive at their bus stop because it has been realized that a lot of people wait at bus stops in vain and that the buses have been equipped with facilities that will enable the operators see the buses in real time and switch buses from one route to another to gain efficiency.

”There would be security camera on board to ensure safety of passengers. The live feeds from the cameras will be made available to security agencies to be able to track any mishap. Customers can also use WIFI on the buses as well as enjoy videos and music on the go”, he said.

Thursday 12 February 2015

Kevin Olusola Distinguishes Self By Winning Grammy Award


Kevin Olusola, a Nigerian/American cellist, beat-boxer, saxophonist, songwriter, producer, and singer is the Nigerian of the moment!

Olusola picked up his very first Grammy award along with his Accapela group 'Pentatonix' during the 57th Annual Grammy Awards Premiere Ceremony.

The talented five member group was recognized for the arrangement of the song 'Daft Punk'.

The song, a medley of hit songs by pop duo Daft Punk, mashes up several of their tracks, including "One More Time," "Get Lucky" and "Digital Love," among several others.

Interestingly, this arrangement of 'Daft Punk' by Pentatonix was recorded in a bedroom closet and the video was filmed in a kitchen.

In 2011, Pentatonix won the popular NBC Acappella reality competition show "The Sing-Off." which encouraged the group to release 5 albums which all charted in the top 20 of the Billboard 200 charts and sold over 500,000 records as well as amassed more than 600 million views on their YouTube channel

Kevin Olusola attended Owensboro High School, graduated from Yale University with a degree in East Asian studies and attended the Kentucky Center Governor's School for the Arts in the summer of 2004

Olusola has also been identified as developing the art of “celloboxing” (playing cello and beatboxing simultaneously). His celloboxing version of Mark Summer‘s “Julie-O” went viral in April 2011, which led him to become involved with Pentatonix.

Olusola has performed at prestigious classical musical festivals such as the Amsterdam Cello Biennale and the Kronberg Academy Festival, opened the TED Conference in Vancouver, and was chosen by Quincy Jones to represent him in concert at the 2012 Montreux Jazz Festival on the same program as Bobby McFerrin and Chick Corea. Olusola is fluent in Mandarin.

Not only does he have an amazing voice, he can make interesting harmonious sounds with his mouth and throat that blends so well with other members of the group.


Kevin Olusola becomes the first Nigerian to win a Grammy in the group category.






Acknowledgement: Gold Myne TV

Friday 6 February 2015

Chimamanda Adichie Nominated For Grammy Award


Award-winning writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has been nominated for a Grammy Award.

The nomination is hinged on her collaboration with the American singer Beyonce on the song “Flawless”, which has become an iconic song for women around the world and which has also become the most popular song on Beyonce’s recent album everywhere across the globe.

BeyoncĂ©’s recent self titled album, which includes “Flawless”, is in the running for Album Of The Year at the Grammy Awards, and all major participants on the album are nominated, as is the practice.

Beyonce has spoken out about how much Chimamanda’s speech in TEDx on why ''We Should All Be Feminist'' inspired her and why she just had to sample it in her song.

Chimamanda Adichie, by virtue of this nomination, becomes the first Nigerian writer to be a Grammy nominee.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie grew up in Nigeria and her work has been translated into thirty languages and has appeared in various publications, including The New Yorker, Granta, The O. Henry Prize Stories, the Financial Times, and Zoetrope.

She is the author of the novels Purple Hibiscus, which won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, and Half of a Yellow Sun, which won the Orange Prize and was a National Book Critics Circle Award Finalist, a New York Times Notable Book, and a People and Black Issues Book Review Best Book of the Year; and the story collection The Thing Around Your Neck.

Her latest novel Americanah, was published around the world in 2013, and has received numerous accolades, including winning the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction and The Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize for Fiction; and being named one of The New York Times Ten Best Books of the Year.

A recipient of a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, she divides her time between the United States and Nigeria.

The Grammy Award will hold on February 8th in America and whether Beyonce's album wins or not, the nomination is already a milestone for a Nigerian writer.

The Grammy Award - one of the world’s most prestigious Music Award is organized by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry.

Thursday 5 February 2015

Former Mayor of Enfield To Contest For UK Parliament


The former Mayor of the London Borough of Enfield, Nigerian born Kate Anolue is to contest for the UK Parliamentry elections under the banner of the Labour Party.

The former midwife who is from Nanka in Anambra State, Nigeria, followed her father’s desire for her to become a nurse and moved to Edmonton more than 20 years ago, starting her training in May 1972, eventually qualifying as a midwife.

She has delivered thousands of babies since becoming a midwifery sister at North Middlesex Hospital in 1984.

Kate became Mayor of Enfield in 2012 after being a Councillor for 10 years.

In April 2007, Councillor Kate Anolue was conferred with an honorary Freedom of the Borough in Enfield, the highest tribute that can be bestowed upon someone who has rendered eminent services to the community. 

A statement released by Jenny Okafor, the President of Nigerian Women in the Diaspora UK says " lets make it happen for this phenomenal unstoppable woman. She is one of us. Support her efforts and help put more women on the map"

The final selection for Parliamentary candidates takes place at the end of February 2015.

Wednesday 4 February 2015

Nigeria Launches Online Company Registration Portal



Nigeria has launched a new company registration portal that would enable prospective business owners to register their businesses or companies with ease and at affordable costs.

Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Olusegun Aganda, who launched the Corporate Affairs Commission[CAC] on-line registration platform in Abuja, said the portal would significantly reduce the time and cost for business registration in Nigeria.

It would take an average of one month to register a business in the country, but with the new portal business registration would henceforth be done within some hours, he said.

According to him, “Nigeria ranks 129 out of 189 countries with ease of starting a business. With this platform which we are launching today, Nigeria will now emerge as one of the jurisdictions with fastest business registration points in the world''.

''It is gratifying to note that the new software is robust enough to accommodate all e-payment platforms such as inter-switch, e-transact, visa card, master card, verve card, American express and other forms of electronic payment.With the new application, customers can access and pay for the Commission’s services on-line. Also, Customers other than accredited agents/professionals can carry out their own transactions directly with the Commission. Nigerians will no longer have to incur other extra costs and inconveniences to travel to the Commission’s office to register and wait for a long period before they register their businesses''.

The online portal is live and can be accessed via http://services.cac.gov.ng/

Tuesday 3 February 2015

Lagos Mainland Hospital, Yaba: The untold story behind defeating the Ebola Viral Disease in Nigeria



The outbreak of Ebola Viral Disease (EVD) in Nigeria was an enormous public health challenge in 2014. One of the important factors that ensured the successful treatment of infected persons and ultimate elimination of the EVD in Nigeria was the availability of a facility in Mainland Hospital, Yaba, Lagos State. Established in 2012 by the Lagos State Government with funding support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and technical assistance from Family Health International (FHI 360) under the TBCARE project, the facility is an ultra-modern multi-drug resistance tuberculosis (MDR-TB) treatment center. It is a 40 bedded admission facility with 2 wards of 14 beds each for males, and a ward of 12 beds for females and children.

At the early hours of Friday, July 25, 2014, millions of Nigerians woke up to the shocking realization that EVD was indeed truly in-country and anybody irrespective of age, tribe, creed or gender was at risk of being infected. The fear of infection, as well as death from EVD, touched on the very core of people’s existence as individuals, families, communities and the entire nation. Everyone residing in Nigeria could no longer take for granted the simplest gesture of basic human relationships such as shaking hands, caring for loved ones and burying the dead in line with cultural norms. Nigeria had its fair share of the crisis, recording 21 cases of the disease and 9 deaths before being declared Ebola-free. Nigeria’s effort and ability to curtail further spread of the virus received international acclaim with the United States Center for Disease Control (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) calling on other countries battling the disease or at risk of an outbreak to replicate the actions and public health measures implemented in Nigeria.

With rising cases of EVD in Nigeria, the Government of Nigeria considered the MDR-TB treatment center in Lagos Mainland Hospital suitable for the containment and treatment of EVD, both in design and spatial alignment. Although originally designed for the highly infectious airborne MDR-TB disease, the facility played a positive role in the treatment and containment of the EVD spread. Whether the original design features of the facility had a significant impact on the EVD transmission rate or prognosis of the disease is beyond the scope of this article. This writeup therefore limits itself to exposing the ‘as built’ architectural features of the MDR-TB treatment center where all confirmed EVD cases in Lagos State were admitted and treated. The responsibility for determining any relationship between the design features of the facility and the successes recorded on EVD elimination from Nigeria is left to the reader.

The infection prevention and control (IPAC) enabled MDR-TB treatment center was purposely designed to ensure efficient and sustainable maintenance of maximum air exchange at an internationally acceptable rate per hour. This was achieved partly due to the IPAC principles introduced to the design of this center. The head rooms of the building were purposively designed to be above average height while windows were made large, evenly distributed and closely spaced throughout the building. The windows begin from as low as 750mm above the finished floor level of the building and goes as high as 2100mm, aligned with the prevailing dominant wind direction. Artificial cooling was purposefully not provided. This was based on assumptions that patients (and healthcare workers alike) may close the windows to achieve better cooling, thereby, preventing the evacuation of contaminated air from the wards/rooms.

Additionally, the ward design purposively excluded artificial ventilation systems (AVS) in order to minimize the need for constant uninterrupted power supply which is usually not tenable in a low income country like Nigeria; thereby, keeping the cost of maintenance low. Thus, only natural ventilation was ensured through averagely high head rooms and multiple, large windows; thereby, improving safety of patients and healthcare workers, management efficiency as well as sustainability of patient care in the facility and ultimately achieving maximum air exchange rate necessary for the treatment of highly infectious airborne diseases such MDR-TB. The floors are made of seamless sheets of linoleum, with upturns at the edges, to ease cleaning and prevent trapping dirt and infectious organisms. The walls have seamless finishes, coated with washable paints. Waste water (sewage) from the wards are channeled through closed system of drainages into large, properly sealed septic tanks and soak-away right within the treatment facility, to prevent infection spread. The structural arrangements also facilitate ward decontamination and make the ward environment non-conducive for microorganisms to thrive.

The spatial arrangement of the treatment center also took into consideration the satisfaction, safety and security of both patients and health care workers. The treatment center is highly secured within a perimeter fence, with a security checkpoint at the entrance gate. Entrance into each of the wards is restricted with automatic control buttons located at the Nurses’ station, to allow for only unidirectional access to the wards. Main access door from the Nurses’ station to the main wards have fixed glass windows that allow the nurses to directly observe their patients even while on their desks. The facility features allows for only authorized persons to be allowed in or out of the facility at any given time. There is a designated area with controlled access and barrier for patient relatives to wait and/or talk to their loved ones who are patients on admission in the facility.

The entire MDR-TB facility is well lighted, with backup power supply from the national grid, as well as a stand-by generator (powered occasionally, whenever necessary). The facility is well landscaped, creating a green and serene environment with beautiful waves of walkways. Recreational facilities such as table tennis and assorted indoor games are provided in the lawn and the beautifully made gazebos to create a home-like environment that facilitate longer term patient stay. Multiple hand washing bays with automatic controls are available both within the wards, lawns and the recreation areas, to promote hand washing practices by both healthcare workers and patients. Each of the wards are also equipped with modern toilet and bathroom suites, serving an average of 3 patients to a convenience. Healthcare workers’ stations are also equipped with similar sanitary facilities, for their maximum comfort, safety and security. The center has its own consulting rooms, state of the art digital X-ray facility, pharmacy unit and a well-furnished healthcare workers’ lounge.

The MDR-TB treatment center located at the Lagos Mainland Hospital remains one of the game changers in the celebrated successes of the Government of Nigeria and her international collaborators to wrestle down EVD in Nigeria. Establishing these type of centers in each state of the federation will go a long way in not only addressing the rising cases of MDR-TB in Nigeria, but will serve as a readily available facility for the containment of any complex infectious disease outbreak in any given state. Other MDR-TB treatment centers of similar capacity in Nigeria, established with funding from USAID and technical assistance from FHI 360 include Dr. Lawrence Henshaw Memorial Hospital, Calabar in Cross River State; Infectious Disease Hospital, Kano in Kano State and the Federal Medical Centre, Yola in Adamawa State.



Website: http://www.fhi360.org/countries/nigeria
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