JUST IN: Nigeria Receives First Batch Of COVID-19 Vaccine

The first batch of AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccine has arrived in Nigeria.

Bashir Ahmad, personal assistant on new media to President Muhammadu Buhari, disclosed this via Twitter on Tuesday.

It was gathered that almost four million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine were shipped via the COVAX Facility, a partnership between CEPI, Gavi, UNICEF and WHO.

The vaccine was manufactured by the Serum Institute of India from Mumbai to Abuja.

According to a statement by the United Nations in Nigeria, the arrival marked a historic step towards the goal to ensure equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines globally.

UN Resident Coordinator in Nigeria, Edward Kallon, said, “The UN Country Team in Nigeria reiterates its commitment to support the vaccination campaign in Nigeria and help contain the spread of the virus.

“The arrival of these vaccines in Abuja today marks a milestone for the COVAX Facility in its unprecedented effort to deliver at least 2 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines globally by the end of 2021.”

President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha and other prominent Nigerians will be among the first set of Nigerians to receive the COVID-19 vaccine on live television.

They are expected to receive the first dose of the vaccine on Saturday.

The Executive Director/CEO, National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Faisal Shuaib, said this on Monday at the Presidential Task Force (PTF) joint national briefing on COVID-19.