4683 Nigerians get second dose of AstraZeneca vaccine

The National Primary Health Care Development Agency(NPHCDA) said it has administered 4683 second doses of AstraZeneca vaccine to qualified Nigerians who were inoculated with the first dose about 6 to 12 weeks ago.

It also disclosed that 96 percent of the target populations of 1, 929, 237 have so far been vaccinated with the first dose of AstraZeneca vaccine which began in March 2021.

The Executive Director of NPHCDA Faisal Shuaib disclosed this on Tuesday at a press conference to provide an update on the status of COVID-19 vaccination in the country.

Shuaib said, “We are very pleased to announce today that we have almost completed administering all first doses included in this campaign, as of 24th May.”

“We have now provided first COVID-19 vaccine doses to a total number of 1,929,237 Nigerians, representing 96% of the targeted population. In addition, we have begun providing second doses, and that number has reached 4,683.”

“Those individuals currently eligible for second doses will have received their first dose 6 to 12 weeks ago.”

“We are advising that all Nigerians who have received their first dose should check their vaccination cards for the date of their second dose, and ensure that they receive the second dose to gain full protection against COVID-19.”

Shuaib also said the Agency has assessed the communication and mobilization activities that have been undertaken thus far to create awareness for the COVID-19 vaccine and encourage uptake as its transitions to administering the second dose.

“As we transition to administering second doses, our teams have assessed the communication and mobilization activities that have been undertaken thus far to create awareness for the COVID-19 vaccine and encourage uptake.

“We will be building on the work we’ve already done in these areas to ensure that Nigerians can easily access accurate information about COVID-19 vaccination.

“Our goal is to do everything possible to educate, combat misinformation, and ensure confidence in the safety and effectiveness of vaccines, and to ensure all Nigerians have clear information on how, where, and when to get the vaccine.”

We will do this through continuous engagement and communication with communities across our country. Shuaib said.

Shuaib said the date for the next shipment of the COVID-19 vaccine to Nigeria has not been officially confirmed due to the global challenge regarding vaccine supply.

“The global community is facing great challenges regarding vaccine supply. Like most nations, this impacts the clarity over Nigeria’s next shipment”.

“While we have information that we may get the next consignment of vaccines by end of July or August, these have not been officially confirmed”.

When we are able to, we will provide an update regarding timelines and details of the next shipment. At present, we do not have that information available due to the wider context we are in”.

Shuaib however said there are some positive developments on vaccine update which will be accessible by Nigeria.

He said: “Pfizer and BioNTech pledged on Friday of last week to provide 1 billion doses of their COVID-19 vaccine to low-and-middle-income countries by the end of 2021, and another 1 billion doses in 2022.

“Johnson & Johnson also announced it has signed a deal to provide 200 million doses of its vaccine to Covax.”

“Separately, the International Monetary Fund is now advocating for a $50 billion fund to be spent on ensuring a faster rollout of COVID-19 vaccines globally and is calling for at least 40% of the global population to be vaccinated by the end of this year, and at least 60% by June 2022.”

“The fund would be used to increase COVAX vaccine coverage, procure additional tests, and expand vaccine production capacity.

We strongly endorse the creation of such a fund and emphasize that all nations must have comparable access to COVID-19 vaccines in order to end this pandemic.

“Additionally, the United States announced it will donate 20 million vaccine doses by the end of June to the COVAX scheme,” Shuaib added.

Shuaib also stated that the Federal Government is taking significant precautions to protect Nigerians against B.1.617.2, known as the Indian variant.

“Flights from India and other high-risk countries such as Turkey and Brazil have been barred from entering Nigeria, we are ramping up our test and trace measures, and we are accelerating the national project to establish production of oxygen supplies across all states of Nigeria.”

He enjoins Nigerians to continue to observe the Public Health or non-pharmaceutical measures in place to curb the transmission of Covid-19, as the world is not out of the woods yet.

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