.Covid-19: Bank chief tasks Nigerians on adherence to safety measures
Covid-19: Bank chief tasks Nigerians on adherence to safety measures
By Lydia Ngwakwe
Covid-19
Lagos, April 2, 2020 (NAN) The Group Managing Director, Access Bank Plc, Mr Herbert Wigwe, has implored Nigerians to adhere to stipulated social distancing guidelines, and practice regular hand washing as directed by the World Health Organization.
“We are positive that we can beat the spread of the virus, if we all comply with the safety measures as advised by the NCDC and WHO ” he said in a statement on Thursday in Lagos.
Wigwe said that Access Bank, in its characteristic manner of offering ‘more than banking,’ is at the forefront of the fight against COVID-19.
“Through our various projects, we are looking to support the government and the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) by providing facilities that can serve as both testing and isolation centers,” he said.
According to the bank chief, researchers have identified early detection and isolation as important parts of ending the spread of the virus and that making testing and isolation centers more accessible, will help save more lives.
Access Bank PLC has been at the forefront of the interventions deployed to fight the COVID-19 pandemic by big players in the private sector.
The Bank played a major role in the formation of The Coalition against COVID-19 (CACOVID), a task force instituted to ensure the minimisation of the impact of Coronavirus pandemic in Nigeria.
The new joint effort with other members of CACOVID has seen the Bank donate N1bn to facilitate the building of 1000-bed isolation centers across the 6 geopolitical zones of the country.
According to the statement, the building of the test and isolation centers will be in phases.
The first phase of the project is the construction of additional testing and isolation centers, in Lagos (Yaba and Gbagada), Enugu, Kano, Port Harcourt, Borno, and Abuja.
The next phase of the project will see the construction of additional centers in more states of the federation to enable early detection and testing of suspected COVID -19 cases as well as treatment of confirmed cases, it said.(NAN)
LED/CHIN/SOA
Edited by Chinyere Bassey/Oluwole Sogunle