Abia State Government has announced plans to establish two additional isolation centres for disease control in the state.
The establishment of two additional isolation centres marks a significant step in Abia State’s efforts to strengthen its healthcare infrastructure and disease preparedness strategy.
The move comes amid heightened global attention to public health and epidemic response following the COVID-19 pandemic, which exposed gaps in isolation capacity across many Nigerian states.
The Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, disclosed this on Monday in Umuahia, the state capital, while briefing journalists on the outcome of this week’s State Executive Council meeting presided over by Governor Alex Otti.
He said scoping of the two locations is ongoing, adding that one will be sited at the Infectious Disease Hospital, Aba, while the second will be located at the Ozuakoli Leprosy Centre.
He added that the Amachara Specialist Hospital and Diagnostic Centre remains the state’s flagship isolation centre and stressed that there are no confirmed cases of diseases of public health concern in the state.
‘The reason for this update is to give us a sense of what the state government is doing in the health sector. The enrolment figures for the Abia State Formal Insurance and Health Scheme continue to grow and have surpassed all target expectations.
‘Whereas the enrolment target for 2025 was 1,000, that figure has been met and surpassed as of 17 August, 2025. To date, the enrolment figure stands at 107,269 enrollees, signifying a resounding success for the scheme’, he declared.
Kanu also revealed that 140 primary health care centres have been completed under the Project Ekwueme Programme, with many awaiting functionalisation and opening for public use.
‘Functionalisation means equipping them and getting them ready for use. Currently, 33 PHCs are undergoing functionalisation, which will commence sometime during the week. With the additional 33 centres, the total number of functional PHCs will rise to 50, with another 50 expected before the end of September 2025’, Kanu explained.
He further disclosed that two cottage hospitals located in Abayi and Umuihe communities are ready for commissioning, while secondary healthcare facilities at Abayi General Hospital, the SDG Multi-Purpose Hospital at Ugwunagbo, and the Cottage Hospital at Temporo are already delivering services to residents.
‘All this underscores the high premium the state government places on delivering accessible and affordable healthcare to Abians’, he said.
He added that reconstruction works were ongoing in several general hospitals and are expected to be fully delivered before the end of November 2025.
On education, the commissioner said the Ministry of Basic Education has continued to make progress in renovating schools, training newly recruited teachers, assessing dilapidated schools, supervising secondary education, aligning stakeholder policies, and conducting standardised examinations across the state.
‘Only a few days ago, the ministry conducted a tour of 63 public schools undergoing renovations and retrofitting. These interventions include blockwork, roofing, and painting in some cases’, Kanu said.
He noted that the newly recruited teachers underwent a two-week intensive training under the Abia First initiative, where they were taught effective lesson delivery, classroom management, modern pedagogies, and strategies for inclusive education.
The commissioner added that 340 schools across the state—20 per local government area—had been identified for immediate renovation, and that fencing of public schools and recruitment of security personnel were ongoing to curb vandalism.
He also disclosed that an education stakeholders’ meeting was recently held with officials of WAEC, NECO, NUT, ANCOPS, PTA, publishers, and other groups, where it was resolved that graduation ceremonies in public schools will now be restricted to primary six pupils and SS3 students.
The Commissioner for Health, Prof. Enoch Uche; the Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Mr. Goodluck Ubochi; and the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr. Ferdinand Ekeoma, were present during the briefing.
PUNCH Online reports that Otti’s administration has made healthcare reform a priority, launching initiatives such as the Project Ekwueme Programme to build and upgrade primary health care facilities, expand health insurance enrolment, and revamp secondary health centres.
These developments align with the administration’s broader agenda to improve healthcare delivery, enhance epidemic preparedness, and make medical services more accessible and affordable for Abians.
