Health Minister says Nigeria may get COVID-19 vaccines in 10 days

The Federal Government through the Health Minister has disclosed that the country may get vaccines in 10 days.

The Health Minister, Dr Osagie Ehanire, disclosed this in a meeting in Lagos on Saturday.

Ehanire disclosed that the vaccines are expected are coming from 5 countries in 10 days’ time.

“We are told that by the end of this month, which is about 10 days from now, we shall get the vaccines.

“We do not produce the vaccines. They are manufactured abroad in about four or five countries,’’ he told newsmen at the end of an inspection tour of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) Idi-Araba.

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He added that the only African nation manufacturing vaccine is South Africa, adding that nations with the capacity to manufacture had their own challenges and had to vaccinate their population first.

“South Africa has a license to make the Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccines, while Russia only recently gave India the licence to produce AstraZeneca,” the minister said.

The Minister also added that Nigeria had the operational capacity for the distribution of vaccines.

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What you should know

• Nairametrics reported last week that the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC)  approved the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine for use in Nigeria.
• Nigeria is also expected to receive the first batch of COVID-19 vaccines, which is 15 million doses, from AstraZeneca under the COVAX programme.