COVID-19: FG, stakeholders mull plans to scale up ethanol production
• Say Harmonisation Of Materials For Sanitiser Production Is Key
• NAFDAC DG Orders Production Of Chloroquine For COVID-19 Treatment
The Federal Government has engaged stakeholders in the manufacturing sector to boost the production of ethanol for sanitisers.
The move is expected to assist government increase its supply of sanitisers and curtail further spread of coronavirus pandemic across the country.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Richard Adeniyi Adebayo, disclosed this, yesterday, at the weekly engagement with the Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) of the Committee On Sustainable Production/Delivery of Essential Commodities During COVID-19 in Abuja.
Adebayo said the collaboration would help to guarantee the availability of raw materials for mass production of sanitisers, which has become a daily necessity in the fight against the pandemic.
The minister also emphasised the need to observe market protocol by wearing facemasks and making use of hand sanitisers on approved market days for easy access transactions.
Also, Director General, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Prof. Mojisola Christianah Adeyeye has ordered the production of Chloroquine for emergency stockpile and possible clinical trial treatment of COVID-19.
She said chloroquine was reported to function as antiviral at both the entry and post-entry stages of 2019-nCoV infections. It has also recently been reported as potential broad-spectrum antiviral drug.
