BY Samuel Akpan
Nigeria on Thursday recorded 53 COVID infections. Here are five updates about the pandemic this Friday.
Buhari calls for equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines
President Muhammadu Buhari has called on world leaders and global health institutions to ensure equitable distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine to end the pandemic.
Buhari said hoarding of COVID vaccine must end and production should be extended to Africa to meet the need of the people in the region.
Buhari spoke on Thursday at the Paris Peace Forum (PPF) in Paris, France.
“Resolving supply-chain constraints would require better coordination within the manufacturing process; and between manufacturers and end-users,” Buhari said.
“There is a clear need for the expansion of vaccine production capacity in Africa. Licensing agreements should be reached with pharmaceutical companies for the transfer of intellectual property and technology to support the production of vaccines in Africa.
“If global vaccination is the only way to end the COVID-19 pandemic, then all stakeholders must act in a coordinated manner to plug the vaccine supply gap in Africa.”
Dutch pandemic experts recommend COVID lockdown to curb surge in cases
Pandemic experts in the Netherlands have recommended that the country should impose a lockdown to fight the surge in COVID-19 cases.
Caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s cabinet is expected to take a decision on the recommendation on Friday.
Oftentimes the government follows the advice of the panel, but not always.
Ukraine to make COVID vaccination mandatory for medical workers
Ukraine’s health ministry has proposed that compulsory COVID vaccination be expanded to cover medical personnel and municipal employees.
The government had made the COVID vaccine mandatory for teachers and employees of state institutions and local governments.
Ukraine is said to be among the countries in Europe with low vaccination rates.
WHO: Diabetes worsening COVID-19 fatalities in Africa
The World Health Organisation (WHO) says COVID-19-related deaths are higher in African patients with diabetes.
The global health body disclosed this on Thursday in an analysis on underlying conditions or comorbidities in Africans who tested positive for COVID-19.
The WHO report says data evaluated from 13 countries showed a 10.2 percent fatality rate in patients with diabetes, compared with 2.5 percent for COVID-19 patients overall.
The report said the fatality rate for people with diabetes was also twice as high as the fatality rate among patients suffering from any comorbidity including patients with HIV and hypertension.
“Since the early days of the pandemic, people with diabetes in countries around the world have been prioritized to receive COVID-19 vaccinations. Africa has faced challenges in this strategy,” the report reads.
Nigeria records 53 infections
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) says 53 COVID infections have been reported in eight states and the federal capital territory (FCT).
The states that reported the fresh cases are Lagos (19), FCT (7), Plateau (7), Rivers (7), Imo (5), Kano (4), Zamfara (2), Bayelsa (1) and Gombe (1).
The agency said Thursday’s report includes nine and 10 cases from Lagos reported on November 10 and 11.
It also includes five cases from Imo recorded on November 10; one and three infections reported in Kano on November 10th and 11; 16 discharges reported in Kano on November 10.
The NCDC said 325 patients recovered from the infection.
Eleven people reportedly died of COVID complications, including a backlog of 10 fatalities from Edo.
So far, Nigeria has recorded 212,947 COVID cases, 205,000 recoveries and 2,933 deaths.
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