Examining the Views and Opinions of Itinerary Traders on Adherence to COVID-19 Lockdown in Enugu State, Nigeria

Abstract

The outbreak of COVID-19 caused human activities to be affected in one way or another. As a result, measures were put in place by various national governments to reduce the spread of the virus. This paper examines adherence to COVID-19 guidelines in Nigeria among itinerant traders, using a total of 40 eligible participants from selected local governments in Enugu state, Nigeria. The study adapted purposive sampling techniques to identify eligible participants; while in-depth interview was the method used for data collection. Among other findings, result shows that the control measures rolled out by government were seriously undermined. Nomadic traders, driven by economic gains, played covert role in the spread of the virus. This signalled a weak link in the efforts to curb the spread of the virus in Nigeria. The study contributes to a more exact diagnosis of the weak link in the efforts to contain the spread of the virus and how the quest for economic gains drove the abuse of COVID-19 mitigation protocols with its attendant health implications. It therefore recommends that government should strengthen the institutional capacity for detection and control, and provide the critical infrastructural facilities that will make for intensified surveillance in future epidemic or pandemic outbreak. Economic incentives and the effective monitoring of protocol enforcers saddled with the responsibility of enforcing government directives are also encouraged in order to curb compromise.