By Hassan Zaggi
The Federal Government has said that the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have adequate quantity of COVID-19 vaccines to go round all eligible persons.
The Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Faisal Shuiab, disclosed this while receiving over three million doses of Johnson & Johnson single shot vaccine donated by Italy, in Abuja, Monday.
The European Union (EU) member states had earlier donated over 17 million doses to Nigeria, making it over 20 million doses of vaccines donated to Nigeria.
This represents 61 per cent of all donated vaccines received by Nigeria through the COVAX facility.
He, therefore, called on all eligible persons including pregnant women to go to the nearest health facility and get vaccinated free and that the vaccines are safe.
“Also, let me reiterate the fact that we have adequate quantity of COVID-19 vaccines across all states for every eligible person in Nigeria.
“And to assure all Nigerians, our donors, and partners, that we are committed to equitable and effective COVID-19 vaccination.
“I therefore, urge all persons aged 18 years and above including pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers to take advantage of the availability of these vaccines to get vaccinated.
“All COVID-19 vaccines in Nigeria are free, safe, effective and protects you, your family and community against COVID-19,” he stressed.
Dr. Shuiab explained that as at April 11, 2022, Nigeria has fully vaccinated 13,588,718 persons which is approximately 12.2% of our total eligible population.
“Meanwhile 23,012,700 Nigerians have received their first dose which represents 18% of the total eligible population. We have also intensified our technical support to the states to ramp up the vaccination coverage.
“We are currently supporting the states to finalize their micro plans which we believe will further strengthen accountability in the utilization and management of available resources and increase uptake based on locally acceptable methods and standards,” he said.
Speaking, the Italian Ambassador to Nigeria, Stefano De Leo, assured that his country remained committed, together with members of the EU to support Nigeria.
According to him: “Italy remains committed, along with other European Union members to support Nigeria’s vaccine needs, with the aim to help to expand global vaccine coverage. Providing single shot vaccines reduces logistical challenges and ensures a faster achievement of Nigeria’s government vaccination goal.”
On his part, the Country Representative of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Nigeria, Dr. Walter Kazadi Mulombo, applauded the Italian government for the gesture, insisting that vaccination is the only best defence against COVID-19 and that mass vaccination campaigns produce results.
While saying that the donated vaccines will go a long way in boosting the ongoing COVID-19 vaccination in Nigeria, Dr. Kazafi said the WHO and partners will continue to provide support to the in-country delivery of vaccination programmes.
