The year 2020 was a year the entire world will not forget very easily. The entire year became identified, to a large extent, with the COVID-19 global pandemic. No country was spares the harrowing experience that took millions of lives around the world and devastated the economies of countries in the world including Nigeria. Although the outbreak of the pandemic was reported by the end of 2019 in China, most countries failed to pay attention to the information with the believe that the pandemic was an Asian medical challenge that will be restricted to that part of the world, not knowing that in a matter of weeks it was going to affect the entire universe.
Incidentally, Nigeria was one of the countries that reacted late to the COVID-19 epidemic challenge. It took the first COVID-19 reported case in Lagos in March, 2020 for the Federal Government to actually rise up to the occasion by putting necessary machinery in place to fight the scourge.
While the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has been in charge of Nigeria’s Coronavirus response in the areas of testing, communication, and surveillance, the task of coordinating vaccination rests squarely on the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA).
To demonstrate seriousness and commitment to the fight against the disease, the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 was established by President Muhammadu Buhari on March 9, 2020, to coordinate and oversee Nigeria’s multi-sectoral inter-governmental efforts to contain the spread and mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria. The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha heads the PTF.
Earlier this year, the Federal Government announced that the COVID-19 vaccine will arrive by March, which is exactly one year after the disease was reported in Nigeria..
The Government of Nigeria through the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) is leading Nigeria’s efforts to access safe, effective and efficacious COVID-19 vaccines.
NPHCDA shared a link to a website where citizens were expected to book their vaccination appointments. Despite the outlined phases, it was discovered that there are no restrictions around the vaccination dates available to different population groups or around who is able to register.
The registration process also does not provide any means for the government to verify those claiming to be front-line workers. As at now , a greater number of the populace are yet to get the first jab of the vaccination but there are assurances that more vaccine will be imported to take care of the demands while those who have gotten the first jabs are also waiting in the wings for the second jab.
Only about 10 percent pf Nigeria’s population have been vaccinated. At the weekend, President Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo received the second dose of vaccination.
A few states have stated clearly that they cannot continue to bear the cost of vaccination for citizens, therefore the fate of many is hanging in the balance.
With this apparent uncertainty in many states of the country, many have criticised the federal and state governments for giving the vaccine free to wealthy Nigerians and politicians who can afford to pay for it, while having no plans for the poor and the vulnerable. The way things are going, the government’s plans to inoculate 40 percent of Nigeria’s 200 million people this year and another 30 percent in 2022 may not be realised.
In many parts of the country, life has seemingly returned to normal with little or no observance of COVID-19 protocols. Nigeria is Africa’s most populous and Nigerians have a reputation for travelling widely around the world, marking the country out for close monitoring by global health institutions like the World Health Organisation (WHO).