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Covid-19 vaccine: Why Nigeria health ministry dey now reject some Covid vaccines
Nigeria Ministry of Health say dem dey now reject Covid-19 vaccines wey don dey near dia expiry date or wey dem no go fit deliver on time.
Di kontri minister for health, Osagie Ehanire, tok dis one inside statement wia im react to Reuters news agency tori say Nigeria destroy one million Covid vaccines.
Di federal goment confirm say true true some of di Covid vaccines expire last month, but dem don withdraw dem and di National Food and Drug Administration and Control go destroy dem.
Dis vaccines na supply wey developed kontris dey donate through COVAX, di vaccine sharing facility wey GAVI vaccine alliance and WHO dey lead.
Vaccine like di AstraZeneca doses dey safe to keep for up to six months from wen dem first manufacture am.
But di minister say dem dey deliver some of di donated vaccines close to wen e go expire and dis dey cause serious challenge to receive am, distribute am and deliver am to users.
"Dat dey live us very short time, some of dem na just weeks, to use dem, afta you deduct time to transport, clear, distribute and deliver to users."
Oga Ehanire say di mata of donation of surplus Covid-19 vaccines wey get short or expiring shelve live na really serious issue of international concern."Di Ministry of Health share im experience wit partners everytime and now we dey politely reject all vaccine donations wey get short shelf life or di one wey dem no go fit deliver in time,
End of Di one wey oda users dey read well well
"Nigeria don use most of di ova 10m short-shelf-life doses of Covid-19 vaccines wey dem supply to us so far, in good time and we save N16.4b or more dan $40m for foreign exchange," Ehanire tok.
Still, Oga Ehanire assure im kontri pipo say make dem no worry as goment don dey handle di situation effectively, and dem dey uphold di greatest standard for safety of all Nigerians.
Expired vaccinations na problem for oda places?
Oda African kontris bin don also get expired vaccine doses, including Malawi and South Sudan.
Kontris like Democratic Republic of Congo, return di vaccine wey dem no use so dat dem go distribute dem give oda kontris so dat e no go expire.
For July, World Health Organization (WHO) say about 450,000 doses expire for eight African kontris before dem fit give pipo due to short expiry dates.
Di WHO and di Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention recently ask make dem change di way dem dey do vaccine donations to avoid wastage.
"To get plan for short notice and to make sure say doses wit short shelf lives dey seriously increase logistical wahala on health systems wey already dey stretched," dem write for statement.
Dem want make vaccines wey dem donate get minimum of two and a half months before dem expire by di time dem reach di kontri wey go benefit from am.
Dey want make kontris wey go receive di vaccines to dey aware of di donations one month before delivery, and make dem also send am wit di oda essential supplies, like syringes.