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by Olatunji Saliu
ABUJA, Feb.28 (Xinhua) – Nigeria is set to receive its first tranche of COVID-19 vaccines from COVAX, a global program set up to purchase and distribute vaccines, as the country strives to contain the pandemic.
The first shipment of four million vaccines is expected to arrive in the country on Monday, about a year after Africa’s most populous nation registered its index case on February 27, 2020, said Boss Mustapha, Federation government secretary and president. of the Presidential Working Group (PTF) on COVID-19.
Nigeria has recorded a total of 155,417 confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the index case, an imported case, was recorded in Lagos, the epicenter of the virus, according to data from the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) on Saturday.
“I can assure you that the vaccines are arriving and arriving very quickly. Unless the delivery plan changes … we expect our vaccines will be back here on March 1 at 10:30 p.m. and will arrive in Abuja on March 2 around 11:10 am, ”Mustapha told reporters during a regular briefing in Abuja on Saturday.
He said the country expects to receive around 16 million doses in the first quarter of the COVAX facility, while “by the time they deliver the full range, we expect they will deliver 84 million doses of the COVAX facility. COVAX facility which is free and will cover approximately 20 percent of the Nigerian population ”.
“All we expect from the COVAX installation will be the AstraZeneca which is wreaking havoc in terms of storage for us,” he said.
According to Mustapha, Nigeria also has another source of over 40 million doses of vaccine from the African Union Vaccine Procurement Task Force (AVATT).
Nigerian Health Minister Osagie Ehanire told media in Abuja earlier this month that if all planned vaccines were provided, the country would have had to cover more than 45% of the population.
In the past year, out of total confirmed cases, Nigeria has released 133,256 patients and recorded 1,905 COVID-19-related deaths in all 36 states, including the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
Active COVID-19 cases in the country currently stand at 20,183, the NCDC said.
Chikwe Ihekweazu, head of the NCDC, told the same press briefing that the country’s national response over the past year had been “science” led.
Ihekweazu said there is a need to continue to adhere to public health and social measures as the country marks one year of the first COVID-19 case.
This, he said, includes physical distancing, wearing face masks, practicing hand and respiratory hygiene, and avoiding crowded places indoors.
With at least one public health laboratory for COVID-19 testing in every state, more than 70 public health laboratories have been established across the country, as part of efforts to increase capacity for testing and monitoring activities. monitoring COVID-19, he added.
“However, we must remember our resilience and our strength as a country. We cannot afford to give up now and must continue to live up to our responsibilities – whether as individuals, organizations or governments.” , he added. Enditem
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