Last Updated on October 23, 2026 by Olasunkanmi Olajide
By Raymond Osemene
The Artificial Intelligence Application for One Health (AIA4OneforHealth), in collaboration with the Ogun State Ministry of Health, has distributed digital devices to Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers (DSNOs) and handed over equipment for the Infectious Disease Surveillance (IDS) Master Control and Monitoring Room to strengthen disease detection, reporting and response across Ogun State.
The exercise, held today, October 20, 2026, at the Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC), Abeokuta, brought together public health stakeholders to promote the use of digital technology in infectious disease surveillance and management.
Speaking at the event, the Project Lead of AIA4OneforHealth, Prof. Adesina Sodiya, urged DSNOs and other stakeholders across the Local Government Areas (LGAs) to intensify their use of the IDS Master platform. He appreciated LGAs that had embraced the application but expressed concern that only a few had commenced active reporting.
Commending LGAs that had consistently submitted reports through IDS Master, Prof. Sodiya described their participation as encouraging and disclosed that the initiative included a reward mechanism to recognise outstanding performers. He explained that the platform complements existing surveillance systems by enabling members of the public to report suspected disease incidents, including anonymously, without necessarily visiting health facilities.
He added that reports from each LGA are automatically forwarded to the appropriate Local Government Disease Surveillance Officer for attention and follow-up. Prof. Sodiya also announced plans for sensitisation visits to selected LGAs across Ogun State’s three senatorial districts to promote public awareness, application adoption and community participation.
Also speaking, the Director of Public Health, Ogun State Ministry of Health, Dr. Yomi Bamiselu, commended Prof. Sodiya for the initiative and assured stakeholders that the distributed devices would be properly maintained and used for their intended purposes to strengthen disease surveillance and public health monitoring across the state.
Earlier, the Ogun State Coordinator of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr. Nuhu Ningi, called for intensified disease surveillance, active research and sustained public sensitisation to improve case detection and prevent undetected disease transmission.
Dr. Ningi cautioned that a low number of reported cases did not necessarily indicate the absence of disease transmission, noting that inadequate surveillance could result in missed cases and continued community spread. He stressed the need for targeted research, improved case detection and sustained public awareness, particularly in areas falling short of established surveillance indicators.
He reaffirmed his readiness to collaborate with relevant stakeholders to address surveillance gaps and improve public health outcomes across Ogun State.
A major highlight of the event was the presentation of an award to Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area as the Best Local Government Reporter for October in Ogun State, in recognition of its performance in disease reporting through the initiative.
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