Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, says his administration is planning to conduct 400 COVID-19 tests every day as it inaugurates molecular laboratory on Monday.
Fayemi said boosting COVID-19 testing capacity was part of the steps being taken to curtail the spread of the pandemic in the state.
The governor, who spoke at the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado Ekiti, during the inauguration of the molecular laboratory, said, “Ekiti State now has testing capacity of up to 400 tests daily and will be conducting tests across all the 16 local government areas of the state to facilitate early detection of coronavirus and ensure timely and adequate treatment of any infected person”.
“The COVID-19 mobile laboratory will remain in the state even after the pandemic has abated and would be utilised as a fully functional molecular laboratory”.
This, according to the governor, will bolster the state’s molecular testing capability and may be used by medical researchers and clinicians within Ekiti State in the event of any future outbreaks.
Also speaking on the occasion, the founder of the Afe Babalola University, Chief Afe Babalola, who is the grand patron of the state’s COVID-19 Resources Mobilisation Committee, lauded the efforts of the state government, which he said were targeted at protecting lives.
Babalola said the molecular laboratory of ABUAD would be ready in two weeks just as “efforts are already in place to begin Molecular Biology as a course in our university”.
These, he said, would ensure provision of the needed manpower to operate the laboratories efficiently and professionally throughout Nigeria.
Babalola said that ABUAD had purchased equipment that would enable it set up very high standard molecular laboratory that would meet the NCDC accreditation requirements.
