Nigeria is gearing up for the resumption of vaccination of people for COVID-19 as it expects another shipment of 3.92 million AstraZeneca vaccine to arrive in the country between July and August.
The Executive Director of the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Faisal Shuaib, said on Tuesday during a media briefing in Abuja that the federal government had resumed vaccination of the first dose in anticipation of the receipt of the next batch of AstraZeneca vaccine.
“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 stated.
While working with international partners to confirm the next shipment of vaccines to Nigeria, Shuaib said that the federal government had commenced administering the first dose of the vaccine, which was earlier halted due to shortages.
On the assessment of the impact of AstraZeneca vaccine so far, Shuaib said recent research from Public Health England (PHE) showed that the Indian (Delta) variant B.1.617.2 is 92 per cent susceptible to Oxford/AstraZeneca.
According to him, it is comforting to note that the vaccine used in Nigeria can protect against this variant that caused high morbidity and mortality in India.
“However, it underscores the need for us to ramp up our vaccination to more Nigerians.
“As you all are aware, hesitancy towards the second dose is very tied to the continued misinformation and disinformation about COVID-19 and the vaccination programme globally and locally,” he said.
He urged the media not to relent in bringing to bear on COVID-19, “the sheer patriotism and professional prowess you demonstrated in our collective and successful fight against polio in Nigeria.”
