Nigeria is expecting 58m doses of COVID-19 vaccine from COVAX and AVATT – Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire

The Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire has disclosed that Nigeria is expecting 58m doses of COVID-19 vaccine from COVAX and AVATT.

Ehanire who said this at the presidential task force briefing on COVID-19 on Monday February 8, said Nigeria will receive 16 million vaccine doses from COVAX in the first half of the year, while AVATT will supply over 42 million doses.

He further revealed that negotiation is ongoing with India over the Covax vaccine of Barhat Institute, and also with Gamaleya, a pharmaceutical company in Russia over its Sputnik V vaccine.

Ehanire said;

“With regard to vaccines, Nigeria has kept abreast of global development and supports the call of WHO for fair and equitable distribution of vaccines, since covid19 is a threat to mankind.

“We subscribed to two multilateral vaccine access platforms; the first being the Covax facility that will supply members, including Nigeria, vaccines free of charge, to cover 20% of our population. The expected first wave of 100,000 vaccines derived from this facility.

“There has since been a change that now offers Nigeria 16 million vaccine doses in the first half of the year. The other multilateral platform is the African Union AVATT platform, the African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team, chaired by the President of South Africa, Mr Ramaphosa.

“AVATT has acquired 300 million doses of three types of vaccines which have been offered to African countries, based on population, such that no country is left behind.

“Nigeria subscribes to this whole-of-Africa approach, that strives to ensure that we are safe and our neighbours are safe. We shall be offered over 42 million doses by AVATT. If all the projected vaccines are supplied, we estimate we should have covered over 45% of the population.”

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