Health

The Nigerian Government has received the first batch of the R21 malaria vaccines from Gavi, to scale up malaria vaccination in the country. The Minister of Health, Ali Pate, noted that the vaccines arrived as a significant milestone in the government’s efforts to eliminate malaria in the country. He said the vaccines would be distributed to states with the highest burden of the disease, particularly Kebbi and Bayelsa and would serve as a complement to other treatments for malaria. Pate added that the vaccine has proven to be safe and efficient for malaria treatment.

The Nigerian Government, World Bank, and Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, have partner to address the 11 million Nigerian children suffering from malnutrition, focusing on pregnant women, adolescent girls, and children under five in 11 high-burden states. The partnership was officially launched at the Faith Actors Workshop/Public Sensitization Lecture on Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria (ANRIN), held in Abuja yesterday. According to President of CAN, Archbishop (Dr.) Daniel Okoh, Nigeria faces significant malnutrition challenges, with one in three children fewer than five affected.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has announced a notable decline in suspected and confirmed Mpox (Monkeypox) cases over the past month. According to the NCDC's latest update, 51 new suspected cases were reported from Epidemiological Weeks 29 to 32 of 2024, a significant decrease from the 102 cases recorded in the previous four (4) weeks.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday declared the ongoing Monkey pox (Mpox) outbreak in Africa a global health emergency. The WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus virtually met with independent experts to discuss the severity of the outbreak and declared the disease “a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC)”.

The Chief Executive Officer of Vaccine Alliance, Gavi, Dr Sania Nishtar, has said cholera vaccines will be arriving in Nigeria soon. In a post on her X handle on Thursday, Dr Nishtar shared that the vaccines will aid in combating the ongoing deadly cholera outbreak in the country. This announcement comes in response to the widespread outbreak of cholera across Nigeria. Nishtar said“Encouraged to learn that #Cholera vaccines from the #Gavi-funded global vaccine stockpile will soon arrive in Nigeria to help curb the country’s deadly and ongoing outbreak. We stand ready to work with our partners #UNICEF and #WHO to support Minister #muhammadpate, #Fmohnigeria, and #NCDCgov’s timely efforts to contain this outbreak and protect those at the highest risk.

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (PMG-MAN) has attributed paucity of foreign exchange to the contributing factors negating local pharmaceutical industry in the country. The Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Group of MAN has expressed concerns prior to their forthcoming 77th Edition of the Nigeria Pharmacy Manufacturers Expo (NPME) scheduled between September 4 and September 5, 2024. GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) discontinued operations in Nigeria in August 2023, ending its 51-year existence in the country, while French pharmaceutical manufacturing company, Sanofi, exited Nigeria in November.