Today, Tuesday, March 2nd, the first batch of Oxford-Astra Zeneca COVID-19 vaccines arrived in Nigeria. A delivery of about 3.9M doses of the AstraZeneca Vaccine was made today in Abuja.

On hand to receive it, the Chairman PTF on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, Hon. Minister of Health, Hon. Minister for Information, Our ED, Faisal Shuaib, DG NAFDAC, DG NCDC, Ambassadors and Development Partners.

With the vaccine, Nigeria will be joining other countries to combat further spread of the virus.

“The arrival of this vaccine is the result of the commitment of the Federal Government of Nigeria, under the leadership of His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, the support of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 and the guidance of the Honourable Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire”, said Dr Faisal Shuaib, Executive Director/ CEO, NPHCDA.

The delivery of the AstraZeneca vaccine is part of an overall 16 million doses planned to be delivered to Nigeria in batches over the next months by the COVAX Facility, as part of an unprecedented global effort to ensure equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines.

The COVAX Facility, has worked exceptionally hard to ensure that Nigeria gets the vaccine as soon as possible so it can start its vaccination programme to the largest population in Africa,” said Peter Hawkins, UNICEF Nigeria Country Representative.

“Vaccines are a critical tool in the battle against COVID-19. In the meantime, Nigerians must continue to take steps to contain the virus, as the vaccination programme will take at least a year before it is fully effective,” said Dr Walter Kazadi Mulombo, WHO Representative in Nigeria.

See photos of the vaccine delivery: