TheCable

Faisal Shuaib, executive director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), says 1,005,234 people have received the second dose of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.

Shuaib disclosed this on Thursday, during a media briefing in Abuja.

He said the agency has extended the timeline for the administration of second dose by 11 days — from June 25 to July 5 — to enable more people to be vaccinated.

He said those who received their first doses before May 13, can go to any centre to get the second dose.

For those who have received the first dose, Shuaib said the figure now stands at 2,099,568.

He added that the administration of the first dose is ongoing, and urged those who fall within the approved category to approach the designated centres to receive the vaccine.

“It is very important for everyone, including those who have received their second doses, to continue to wear face masks and observe other non-pharmaceutical measures to prevent the spread of the virus,” he said.

Shuaib said among those who have received the first and second doses, only 13,267 people reported mild to moderate side effects, while 4,708 experienced moderate to severe side effects.

He said the side effects should not discourage anyone from receiving the vaccine, adding that those who experienced it have all recovered.

“The cases of mild, moderate and severe reactions that have been recorded are expected from normal vaccination and people who experienced any of these have since recovered and are doing well,” he said.

“Therefore, we should not allow the fear of side effects to discourage us from taking the vaccine, as the long term benefits of getting vaccinated far outweigh the risk of brief side effects.

“It is important to repeat that Nigeria has not recorded any case of death directly linked to COVID-19 vaccination.”

As of June 24, Nigeria has confirmed 167,375 cases of COVID-19, and while 163,917 have recovered, 2,118 deaths have been recorded.