Daily COVID Tracker: NGF to meet over vaccine and police seize fake doses in South Africa

Governors of the 36 states in Nigeria will meet on Thursday to discuss the COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan. Here are five updates about the pandemic this Thursday.

Lagos disburses N1 billion to tourism and entertainment sector

The Lagos state government says it disbursed N1 billion to practitioners in the tourism, hospitality and entertainment sector to help them recover from the setback caused by the pandemic.

Babajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos, disclosed this on Wednesday at the inauguration of Glover Memorial Hall in Lagos Island.

“We are committed to innovatively seeking ways of providing the enabling environment for the tourism and entertainment sector to thrive,” the governor said.

“It is in line with this that we are providing the needed support for the entertainment and tourism sector to recover from the pandemic even as this government provides the institutional framework for creative practitioners to excel and prosper.”

Canada vaccine panel recommends four months interval for doses

National Advisory Committee on Immunisation in Canada has advised provinces to extend the interval between the two doses of a COVID-19 shot to four months.

The recommendation is to enable more people to be vaccinated amid a shortage of doses in the country.

The current protocol is an interval of three to four weeks between doses for the Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines.

The committee said extending the dose interval to four months would allow about 80 percent of Canadians over the age of 16 to receive a single dose by the end of June.

A number of provinces reportedly said they would adopt the recommendation.

US health officials ask Americans to wear masks as states reopen

Health officials in the United States have asked residents to continue to wear masks and practise social distancing, despite states lifting COVID-19 restrictions.

Rochelle Walensky, director at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said the fast spread of new variants in recent weeks could lead to a fourth surge in infections.

“Today we are at a critical nexus in the pandemic,” Walensky said.

“So much can turn in the next few weeks. On the one hand, cases in the country are levelling off at rates just on the cusp of a potential to resurge, and on the other hand, stamina has worn thin, fatigue is winning and the exact measures we have taken to stop the pandemic are now too often being flagrantly ignored.”

Many states in the US have begun lifting restrictions imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19 after recording a sharp decline in infections.

Greg Abbott, governor of Texas, on Tuesday, lifted the state’s restrictions and said businesses could reopen at full capacity from March 10.

The governor also told residents that masks were no longer mandatory.

Governors to meet over vaccine distribution

The Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) will meet on Thursday to discuss the COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Abdulrazaque Bello-Barkindo, head of media and public affairs of the forum, said the emergency meeting will be held virtually.

“The meeting is of a single-item agenda, which will discuss the delivery of the COVID-19 vaccines and their distribution in the country,” he said.

On Tuesday, Nigeria received 3.92 million doses of Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine through the COVAX programme.

Police seize fake vaccine in China, South Africa

Police in China and South Africa have seized thousands of fake COVID-19 vaccines and arrested suspects.

According to a statement issued on Wednesday by International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol), about 2,400 doses of counterfeit vaccine were found at a warehouse in Germiston, Gauteng, South Africa.

Interpol said a large quantity of fake 3M masks were also discovered while three Chinese nationals and a Zambian national were arrested.

In China, the agency said a network selling fake COVID-19 vaccines was uncovered and 80 suspects arrested.

Interpol added that more than 3,000 fake vaccines were seized at the scene.

“Whilst we welcome this result, this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to COVID-19 vaccine-related crime,” Jürgen Stock, secretary-general of Interpol, said.

COVID-19 IN NIGERIA