Adedapo Adesanya
By Adedapo Adesanya
As the country starts its second phase of coronavirus vaccination, Nigeria is set to receive 3.92 million extra doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine latest in early August.
This was disclosed by the Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Faisal Shuaib, at the briefing to update Nigerians on the status of COVID-19 vaccination.
Although an exact date that the country will take delivery of the vaccine was not given, he confirmed that, “We now have information that Nigeria will get 3.92 million doses of Oxford/AstraZeneca by end of July or early August.”
“As we receive additional information on the exact dates in August, we will provide an update regarding timelines and details of this,” he added.
The NPHCDA boss noted that the agency has held town halls in the North Central and North East regions of the country, stating that while efforts to ensure the supply of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines were ongoing, the Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) would hold its planned meeting with stakeholders in the south-south region and the larger communities on COVID-19 vaccination on the course of the week.
Mr Shuaib stressed that the NPHCDA was fully committed to going to communities to discuss directly its vaccine effort, the importance of staying safe and protected against COVID-19, and answering the questions people have.
“We have been really grateful for the high levels of participation and interest in these events. We are confident that through continued awareness-raising, we will be able to keep communities safe and healthy,” he said.
The head of NPHCDA raised an alarm that there has been a rise in COVID-19 cases in several African countries recently and called on all Nigerians to continue to take precautions to prevent the spread of the disease.
According to him, wearing a face-covering over the nose and mouth in public spaces can save lives, pointing out that a curfew remains in place from midnight until 4 a.m. every day.
Mr Shuaib added, “Indoor gatherings must be limited to 50 people, and are only permitted if all attendees abide by social distancing and wear face masks.
“And the government has introduced restrictions on incoming travel from high-risk countries and quarantine requirements to keep Nigerians safe. With a virus like COVID-19, we each must do our part to keep our communities safe.”
Like other African countries, Nigeria is struggling with a lack of supply and inadequate healthcare infrastructure for a rapid mass rollout.
Another factor is vaccine hesitancy rooted in misinformation and falsehood.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said last week that about 90 per cent of African countries would miss a September target to vaccinate at least 10 per cent of their populations.
As of Tuesday, Nigeria had 167,078 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 2,117 deaths. Experts say those figures probably understate the extent of the outbreak, given low testing rates.
