By Grace Kuria
More than 215,000 Nigerians have received their first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines.
The National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) said on Tuesday.
The figure is almost double the number of people inoculated by Monday, March 22, as announced by the head of the agency, Faisal Shuaib.
Shuaib also said, “no severe side effects have been reported since the vaccination started.”
The agency said COVID-19 vaccination has commenced in 32 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Kogi, Kebbi, Zamfara, and Oyo are the only states yet to commence vaccination.
The Nigerian government said it aims to vaccinate about 109 million people against the COVID-19 virus over a period of two years.
Nigeria in early March received 3.94 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine through the COVAX facility, led by the World Health Organisation, and has commenced vaccination beginning with healthcare workers and other providers of essential services.
The country also received 300,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines from telecom giant, MTN, on Sunday, according to the Chairman of PTF on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha.
Nigeria has thus far recorded over 162,000 coronavirus cases and 2,031 deaths.
(With input from Agencies)