BY Samuel Akpan
Nigeria on Friday recorded 63 cases of COVID-19. Here are five updates about the pandemic this Saturday.
France supports COVID vaccine production in Africa
President Emmanuel Macron says France is in support of COVID vaccine production in Africa to boost the availability of the jab in the continent.
Macron spoke on Friday during a news conference with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in Pretoria.
“Trying to lift the hurdles in order to allow vaccine production in South Africa and all of Africa, we are in favour of that,” Macron said.
“But what is the problem we are trying to overcome? What we need to do is vaccinate as soon as possible, as many people as possible. It is a matter of duty and solidarity.
EU drug regulator approves Pfizer COVID vaccine for people aged 12-15
The European Medicines Regulator (EMA) has approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines for 12 to 15-year-olds.
The drug regulator said the vaccine was well tolerated in adolescents and there were no major concerns.
“Extending the protection of a safe and effective vaccine in this younger population is an important step forward in the fight against this pandemic,” Marco Cavaleri, head of health threats and vaccine strategy at the EMA, said.
WHO supports people quitting tobacco to reduce risk of COVID-19 deaths
The World Health Organisation (WHO) says it has launched a campaign to support tobacco users who are taking steps to quit.
In a statement on Friday, Tedros Ghebreyesus, director-general of WHO, was quoted as saying that “smokers have up to a 50 per cent higher risk of developing severe disease and death from COVID-19″.
According to the statement, the campaign is working directly with 29 focus countries and they agreed on selected activities.
“Each country agreed with WHO on selected activities, including running national awareness campaigns, releasing new digital tools, revising policies, engaging youth, training health workers and opening new cessation clinics,” the statement read.
“Also, supporting nicotine replacement therapies through WHO partners, establishing national toll-free quitlines, making quitting courses available, and more.”
Nigeria records 63 COVID cases
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) says the country recorded 63 infections on Friday.
The agency made the announcement in its update for May 28, 2021.
The cases were recorded in seven states and the federal capital territory (FCT).
States that recorded new positive samples are Lagos (25), Ondo (22), Rivers (6), Akwa Ibom (3), Kaduna (3), Kwara (2), Ebonyi (1), and FCT (1).
The NCDC reported zero death from COVID-19 complications on Friday, leaving the fatality toll at 2,071.
Also, 11 persons were discharged on Friday after recovering from the infection.
Out of a total of 166,254 COVID-19 cases now confirmed across 36 states and the FCT, 156,546 patients have recovered.
Britain approves J&J COVID-19 vaccine
Britain has approved the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine for use.
The approval brings to four the number of vaccines authorised in Britain.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson commended the move saying it will boost the country’s vaccination drive.
“This is very welcome news and another boost to our hugely successful vaccination programme. As we encourage everyone to get their jabs, the single-dose Janssen vaccine will play an important role in helping us protect people from the virus,” he tweeted.
COVID-19 in Nigeria
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