The Nigerian Senate has concluded plan to engage the Federal Government to brainstorm on how to go about the procurement of the coronavirus vaccine. The plan was finalised during a meeting between the Executive and the legislative to fine-tune possible ways on how the Nigerian government can procure the vaccine for its citizenry. The meeting was presided over by the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, Zainab Ahmed Minister of Finance and National Planning; Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire; Minister of State for Health, Senn. Dr Olorunimbe Mamora; DG National Budget and Planning, Ben Akabueze; DG National Centre for Disease Control, Chikwe Ihekweazu; and DG National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).
Speaking during the meeting, the Senate president disclosed that the gathering was convened to ascertain the preparedness of the Federal government towards the purchases of the coronavirus vaccine. In his statement, “Essentially, we want you to tell us how we are going to be able to provide the vaccines in such a manner that the vaccines are not only acquired but remain efficacious and effective, that they are not invalidated because of any challenge in the area of storage or during transportation. And we know ours is a very difficult and sometimes impossible environment.
“Other countries have already started receiving the vaccines, even though I’m not sure if there’s any African country that has received. But if any African country should receive first, it should be Nigeria. Lawan continued, “Alongside these, you should also give us an idea on how we are going to start the vaccination. “We need to have the strategy of how we intend to do it so that we don’t run into any chaos,” Lawan said.
