Predicting the Demographic, Attitudinal and Environmental Factors in the Swift Spread of COVID-19 in Nigeria and Suggestions for its Containment

Abstract

The coronavirus illness 2019 (COVID-19) has had a negative impact on several aspects of human life and society, including socio-cultural, economic, political, environmental, and health dimensions. The etiologic agent of COVID-19 is the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first occurrence of this illness was seen as an epidemic in Wuhan, a metropolis in the Hubei province of China. However, it subsequently extended to several other provinces within China and eventually reached around 210 nations throughout the globe. As a result, the World Health Organisation (WHO) officially classified it as a pandemic on 11 March 2020. Nigeria, one of the three most affected nations in West Africa, documented its first verified case of COVID-19 in Nigeria on 28 February 2020 in Lagos State. According to data provided by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Nigeria has recorded a total of 43,151 cases of COVID-19 as of 31 July 2020. The rapid escalation of the epidemic in Nigeria raised serious concerns, particularly due to the lack of transparency on the causes contributing to its widespread transmission, which has not been disclosed to the Nigerian people. This research accurately forecasted the demographic, attitudinal, and environmental aspects that contributed to the rapid transmission of COVID-19 in Nigeria. Additionally, it proposed strategic procedures to control its spread.

Received: 19 July 2024 / Accepted: 29 August 2024 / Published: 7 September 2024