Dr Faisal Shuaib
The Executive Secretary of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, NPHCDA, Dr Faisal Shuaib has stated that Nigeria failed to attain the mandatory 70 percent of the year-end global vaccination coverage for COVID-19.
In an interview with News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday in Abuja, Shuaib noted that Nigeria is 21.6 million persons away from reaching the target of fully vaccinating 70 per cent of its eligible population by December 2022.
He maintained that 62 per cent of the country’s eligible population have been partially vaccinated against COVID-19.
Shuaib disclosed that as at November 25, 2022, that 56,790,371, total eligible persons targeted for COVID-19 vaccination were fully vaccinated while 12,492,646 were partially vaccinated in 36 States, including the Federal Capital Territory.
By this figure, Nigeria has fully vaccinated half of the total population eligible for COVID-19 vaccination.
The NPHCDA boss hinted that 13.2 per cent of fully vaccinated persons in the country have received the COVID-19 booster dose for additional protection against the virus.
He commended the COVID-19 Strategy Group for achieving 50 per cent vaccination coverage in the country, attributing their success to team work.
Shuaib said that he has already directed the team to intensify efforts and close the gap militating against the target, just as he congratulated Nigeria for attaining the feat.
While promising to sustain the momentum, the NPHCDA boss stated that the country’s ambition is to hit 70 per cent of the targeted population.
In the last nine days, Nigeria has not registered any new infection of COVID-19. As at November 19, the country has 266,283 confirmed infections; 259,640 discharged cases and 3,155 deaths, since the outbreak of the pandemic in February 2020.
In the last six months, the country sustained a decline in the number of new cases and in the importation of the infection from other countries.
Nigeria has also not recorded any mortality in the last 46 days.
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