Politics
Nigerian govt dispels reports of relying on donations for COVID-19 vaccinations
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has stated that reports that Nigeria was seeking donations for COVID-19 vaccines are incorrect.
Lai made this clarification via a statement issued on Wednesday in Abuja.
According to him, Nigeria is expecting a large number in batches of doses of COVID-19 vaccine brands in a few weeks, which are being paid for.
The minister said some of the vaccines were procured through the African Union (AU) which had signed a COVID-19 vaccine procurement agreement for 400 million doses for member-states funded with loans from AFREXIMBANK.
“It is not correct that we are going cap in hand relying on donations, vaccines are not like bread that you can go to a shop and buy.
“There is what is called vaccine rationalisation. Even those countries that have the vaccines are not ready to sell.
“That is why we have to go through the AU to negotiate globally for the 400 million for the whole of Africa.
“We are not just expecting large number of doses of the vaccines which the government is paying for, but working toward the development of our home-grown vaccines,’’ he said.
READ ALSO: Kwara APC crisis deepens, as party suspends 11 members loyal to Lai Mohammed
The minister recalled that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in June approved N83.56 billion to purchase 30 million doses of the vaccines.
He said there was lot of cooperation between the Federal Government and various research institutes for the development of locally made vaccines.
“Don’t forget that Nigeria is the first country in Africa that did the sequencing of this virus a long time ago.
“We will be very proud to have our own homemade vaccines and that is why we are giving support to all our various research institutes to have a breakthrough on this.
“We have been told that this may not be the last virus or epidemic we are going to have, therefore, working toward vaccines must be a continuous one.
“The Federal Government is doing everything possible to support and encourage our scientists.
“Hopefully, in few years, we will be able to develop our homemade vaccines which will be administered globally,’’ he said.
Join the conversation
Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism
Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.
As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.
If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.
Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.
INVESTIGATION: In Kwara, multimillion-naira milk processing plant is abandoned, converted to a chicken outlet
After the government spent millions of naira to establish a milk processing plant in Kwara State that would provided jobs...
SPECIAL REPORT: For Sokoto communities, promise of healthcare is akin to death sentence
In this story, ABDULRASHEED HAMMAD delves into the dire realities of Primary Health Care services in Sokoto State, shedding light...
ICYMI…SPECIAL REPORT: NNPCL hides behind PIA to frustrate disclosure, accountability
Nigeria’s major oil company, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), in what appears to be a common practice of disregard...
INVESTIGATION: Multi-million naira Ekiti resort center remains uncompleted a decade after
The multimillion-naira project, expected to comprise recreational buildings, now consists of cassava farmland, a bush used for excretion, and a...
SPECIAL REPORT: Torturous experiences of students with disabilities in Oyo tertiary institutions
For students with disabilities in Oyo state-owned tertiary institutions, learning is a torturous and distressing experience, considering the building structures...