Health Minister Dr Osagie Ehanire has requested support from the German government to build Africa’s first vaccine manufacturing center in Nigeria.
Ehanire said this on Monday in Abuja during a meeting he held with Bright Ory, the German ambassador to Nigeria.
He said the meeting followed the threat of the third wave of COVID-19 which was already affecting many countries.
“If we don’t take action now, what is happening in other countries will happen in Nigeria. We always advise Nigerians to always adhere to the COVID 19 protocol.
“We must continue to vaccinate. We had received four million doses of vaccine and vaccinated nearly two million Nigerians. We are waiting for the next batch which might not arrive for a few months, ” he said.
Ehanire added that for this reason the country needed help from other countries and he held a meeting with the German envoy to specifically request access to vaccines and support for vaccine production in Nigeria.
The Minister observed that Nigeria had a special situation due to its population and that is why he was focusing on vaccine development, in order to meet the vaccine shortage in the country through collaboration with Bio-vaccines Nigeria Limited.
“This is the only way to solve the COVID-19 problem, as many countries in Africa do not have access to vaccines. We need to have our own manufacturing center in Nigeria and that is what we are striving to achieve, he said.
In his speech, Ory noted that Germany was the biggest donor of vaccines, pledging the government to work with Nigeria on health issues, including the pandemic as it not only affects health. but also the economy.
“We are not safe until everyone is safe,” Ory said, while thanking the federal government for its efforts in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. (NAN)
