Nigeria requires N400bn for COVID-19 vaccines for 70 per cent of Nigerians, says Health Minister

By Ajuma Edwina Ameh

The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, says about N400 billion will be required to procure COVID-19 vaccines for only 140 million Nigerians out of the 200 million population.

According to him, $8 per person will be spent on the vaccines.

The Minister said at a briefing in Abuja that N156 billion would be needed in 2021 for the vaccines while N200 billion would be required in 2022.

“The Federal Government is ready for the COVID-19 vaccine to save lives,” Ehanire said.

Persecondnews recalls that Nigeria has recently recorded a surge in COVID-19 cases which has claimed over 1,220 lives.

Ehanire said the COVID-19 vaccines would be stored in the same storage facilities, cold chains used to store the polio vaccines.

Senate President Ahmad Lawan said the National Assembly was ready to support funding of the vaccines, but expressed “lack of confidence” in the ability of the Federal Ministry of Health to effectively store and distribute the COVID-19 vaccines when they arrive in the country.

“I have not been convinced with your presentation that we are ready to bring in the vaccines.

“You have to do much more to convince me that we are ready,” he said.