COVID-19 calls for more awareness in local languages ― Ana

Professor of Environmental Health Sciences, Godson Ana, has said that the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic calls for more awareness to be provided in local languages.

Speaking at a press conference in Ibadan, Oyo State, Professor Ana, also said that there was the need for the private sector organisations to support government’s efforts in curtailing the virus.

Ana who is the founder of Child Health Environment and Safety Trust (CHEST), a non-governmental organisation with a vision to raise future leaders for a cleaner, safer and healthier world, said that

“What I will suggest on behalf of the organisation is that we need to step up more awareness creation with a lot of information reaching the people in vernacular, using our native languages.

“We must increase efforts of engaging the private sector to also be supportive. What the private sector is currently doing is not enough.

“We want to appreciate what some of them have been doing so far. But a lot still needs to be done to complement the efforts of the government especially in the area of providing sanitisers and hand-washing facilities for people that can’t afford them and in public places.

“There is a need to step up actions on personal protective equipment especially while handling and going into public places. Some of these materials are in short supply. And that is why we are calling on other spirited members of the public and private sector to complement the efforts of the government in making sure that these materials are adequately supplied.

“We need to look at post-COVID-19 in term of environmental stewardship.  The panacea to this is to sustain the hygienic culture at all levels. Let’s make sure that the children imbibe this hygiene and sanitization culture. Beyond COVID-19, we need to sustain the culture and advocate that.

“What is required is to have facilities for detention. All hands must be on deck. It is not the fight for the government alone. That is why the private sector must join the efforts. We must make efforts to minimize the spread. What the private sector us doing is not enough. More still need to be done to complement government efforts.”

On the part of CHEST, the professor said, “We are doing this to see how we can join others and see how we can contribute to the curtailment of COVID-19. Part of our palliatives is that we are producing hand sanitisers at a subsidised rate.”

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