If you have been diligently following the activities of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) then you remember the picture below:
On the 19th of March, the NCDC announced a downtime on their Whatsapp channel because they were upgrading the capacity to better inform Nigerians on breaking news as regards Covid-19.
Presumably, because of the downtime of the Whatsapp channel, the NCDC complained of their toll-free lines being jammed with numerous calls from Nigerians. With a lot of people calling to just test if the line is working. This led to increased anxiety and longer hours at the office for their staff.
To reduce some of the load, the NCDC announced that the Whatsapp line is back up and better. So, people are encouraged to direct some of their complaints there before calling the toll-free centres.
Also, you can text them for the latest genuine updates about Nigeria’s fight against Coronavirus.
Some services you can also get from texting the Whatsapp number include:
And also, this:
So, remember, before you call, ask yourself, can this be sent as a text? That should guide your actions to reduce the burden on the NCDC lines. This is to allow people who urgently need the service to access it.
While you are here, read how a week in the life of an NCDC call centre agent goes. This is to help us all understand that we must play our role in fighting this disease. Here’s the link again in case you missed it the first time.
