Nigerian government announces 4.4 million COVID-19 donation from Spain

The federal government of Nigeria got 4,400,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine donated to the country by the Spanish government and people.

Dr. Faisal Shuaib, Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), announced at a brief function held to mark the Spanish government's official shipment of the vaccines that 29,651,708 people who qualify had obtained the initial dose of the COVID-19 vaccines. This, according to him, represented 23.4 percent of the population within the vaccination age.

He stated that the federal government is stepping up efforts to immunize 70 percent of the country's eligible population.

"Today, we've come to formally accept 4,400,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccines gifted to Nigeria by the Spanish Government and citizens in support of the initiative to vaccinate all eligible populations," he said.

According to Shuaib, the donation arrived whilst the country was upping its full vaccination drive across the country.

He claimed that Johnson & Johnson's single-dose regimen vaccine would allow the agency to move quickly toward attaining herd immunity.

Shuaib also provided an update on the COVID-19 vaccine, stating: "As of May 24, 2022, 29,651,708 eligible people have received their 1st dose of COVID-19 vaccines, representing 23.4 percent of our qualified citizens. The second dose has been administered to 14,179,966 people, and 17,702,018 people have been fully vaccinated, accounting for 15.8 percent of our eligible citizens. The booster dose has been administered to 1,178,604 people. "

Shuaib claims that the country's current figures fall far short of the expectations of 70% of the eligible citizens.

"These contributions, however, will help us reach our goal. Even if the virus keeps on evolving, if we keep up with vaccination, the progression of the disease will likely diminish progressively as immunity rise due to vaccination.

"However, if the large percentage of our eligible Nigerians and around the world remains unvaccinated, more virulent and highly contagious variant will emerge with time, and pose more threat than any variant we have seen."

Shuaib continued, saying: "According to new World Health Organization (WHO) estimates, the number of casualties from COVID-19 pandemic (directly or indirectly), also known as excess mortality from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2021 was around 15 million people around the world.

"Thus, in just two years, the pandemic killed approximately 15 million people worldwide. It's heartbreaking" he said.