JUST as experts have agreed that “a jab in hand, schools are open,” they also agreed that the only effective way to contain the COVID-19 pandemic and prevent closure of schools is for Nigerians and other nationals in the country to present themselves for vaccination.
The experts believed that the education sector had been affected across the globe since the outbreak of the pandemic late 2019 in China.
In fact, a recent report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said schoolchildren around the world lost an estimated 1.8 trillion hours and counting of in-person learning since the emergence of the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. As a result, young learners had been cut off from their education and the other vital benefits the schools provide.
The report further indicated that globally, around 131 million schoolchildren in 11 countries missed three-quarters of their in-person learning from March 2020 to September 2021. Among them, 59 per cent – or nearly 77 million – had missed almost all in-person instruction times, while around 27 per cent of countries continue to have schools fully or partially closed.
Experts, therefore, are of the opinion that Nigeria cannot afford another lockdown and consequential closure of schools, urging governments at all levels and critical stakeholders to ensure that citizens are adequately vaccinated to prevent the third wave of COVID-19 pandemic and community transmission.
It was against this backdrop that UNICEF in collaboration with the Child Rights Information Bureau (CRIB) of the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture organised a two-day media dialogue on demand creation for COVID-19 vaccines held in Enugu, the Enugu State capital.
The communication specialist of UNICEF, Mr Geoffrey Njoku, while speaking at the event said that “the COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective and asked Nigerians to dismiss all the myths and conspiracy theories making the rounds to make people believe that the vaccines are harmful for human use.”
He noted that education was affected by the COVID-19 outbreak, which UNECEF had also corroborated that schools for more than 168 million children globally had been completely closed for almost an entire year due to the lockdown.
Njoku, while writing off the conspiracy theories associated with the COVID-19 vaccines, said vaccination remained one of the best ways to eradicate the pandemic, adding that conspiracy theories existed all over the world, but in most cases they were not backed by empirical evidence.
Also speaking, Dr Femi Oluyemi, Health Specialist and officer in charge of UNICEF Enugu field office, said though considerable progress was made by the Federal Government of Nigeria, UNICEF and other development agencies to ensure the spread of COVID-19 pandemic was brought under control through the importation of vaccines and accessibility to the vaccines, serious challenges were being faced in the areas of public hesitancy, unwillingness and conspiracies against the COVID-19 vaccines, making the efforts of government, partners and donors unreciprocated.
On the role being played by the media, he said: “UNICEF and its partners recognise the active role the media has continued to play right from the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic by ensuring correct and timely information about the pandemic are disseminated to the public while at the same time, enabling rapid and widespread reach of the public health information.
“We have continued to see an upward trend in the promotion of health and hygiene practices by the media in Nigeria, through daily communication to the public on protocols enforced by the government to prevent the spread of the virus, reinforcement of useful messages on safe health practices such as increased hand washing, use of face coverings, and social distancing.”
It will be recalled that due to the devastation of the pandemic when economic activities and schools in many countries were shut, there was unusual race for production of vaccines which was considered as the best way to eradicate the pandemic.
Remarkably, by late 2020, Pfizer, Astra Zeneca, Modena and Johnsons had announced successful covid-19 vaccines production with ongoing clinical trials.
However, there were misinformation, myths and conspiracy theories promoted by cynics doubting the health benefits of the jabs.
Dr Obasi Chikezie of Community Medicine Department of Enugu State University Teaching Hospital (ESUT), in his presentation at the event debunked the rumours against the COVID-19 vaccines, warning against the third wave of it.
According to him, “no country is safe until every country vaccinates her citizens.”
While stressing the importance of COVID-19 vaccines, Obasi noted that this was an effective means of preventing the spread of the disease, achieving herd immunity, reduction of its severity, as well as faster world containment of the virus.
He dismissed claims of DNA editing, 666, convulsion, magnetic arm, among others, associated with the vaccines, saying that “the vaccines do not cause convulsion nor have magnetic components that can hold objects to the body of humans as people were made to believe.”
He added that it was important to clear any confusion relating to the vaccines rollout, build public trust and ensure that they have access to the information they require.
Nigerian Tribune also spoke with a teacher at Government Secondary School, Garki, Abuja, who simply gave his name as Nathaniel. He affirmed that he had been fully vaccinated, saying he did not hesitate to take the vaccine and observing all the COVID-19 protocols to prevent community transmission.
He said: “Everyone of us felt it when the schools were shut down for almost a year because of COVID-19 pandemic. We can avoid a repeat by taking precaution and doing what experts and government are saying people should do to protect themselves”
Also, Martins Onyedikachi, an Enugu-based software engineer, said he gladly took the bold step and got vaccinated in order to keep himself and loved ones safe from the pandemic, noting that as a parent who has children in schools, there was need for him and the children to be safe to avoid community transmission.
He told Nigerian Tribune that he was at the Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, for his second dose of Modena vaccine having taken the first jab about five weeks ago.
“I believe in the vaccine and what it can prevent. I have been taking vaccines from childhood such as: measles, yellow fever, and the rest. So when Covid-19 vaccine was talked about and its efficacy, I had to read about it, watch and listen to information about it. I believe in what I read because of the source,” he said.
On reports of adverse reaction that trailed the administration of the jabs shortly after the introduction and production of vaccines within a short period of time, a medical doctor, Nwachukwu Ugwunna, who was a resource person at the media dialogue said vaccines were a safe and clever way to produce an immune response in the body, without causing illness.
He, however, said vaccination is safe and the side effects from a vaccine are usually minor and temporary, such as a sore arm or mild fever, stating that more serious side effects are possible, but extremely rare.
He disclosed that “any licensed vaccine is rigorously tested across multiple phases of trials before it is approved for use, and regularly reassessed once it is introduced.”
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