MTN donates 604,800 doses of Johnson and Johnson Covid-19 vaccine to federal government

MTN Nigeria has donated 604,000 doses of the Johnson and Johnson Covid-19 vaccine to the Federal government.

Meanwhile, over 47 million eligible persons have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine as of the 14th of September 2022, representing 42.2% of the eligible population while 34,242,083 persons have been fully vaccinated and which represents 30.6% of the eligible person.

Also, 3,678,412 of the fully vaccinated persons have received their booster doses.

Consequently, the Federal government has warned that it cannot commit the whole of its time, nor does it have enough resources to fight COVID-19 stressing that the earlier we all come to a common understanding that COVID-19 is still a formidable threat to our collective well-being, the easier and faster it will be for us to defeat it and forge ahead with our lives.

Speaking while receiving the vaccines from MTN yesterday in Abuja, Executive Director of the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Faisal Shuaib though the number 47 million people who have received the Covid-19 vaccine constitute less than half of the overall population of eligible persons in our country, they cannot be wrong to have taken the vaccine.

Shuaib who lamented that the vaccines are here, yet there are still many Nigerians who are hesitant to be vaccinated said, “We seem to be having the wrong information or impression that COVID-19 is no longer existing or it is no longer a problem. Those of us who may be having this impression are wrong. The fact is that COVID-19 is still here with us in Nigeria and elsewhere in the world, and it is a dangerous disease that can surge anytime as it has mutating properties. It does not make sense that the Government and its partners continue to spend colossal sums of money to protect people against COVID-19 if the disease does not exist”.

He commended MTN Nigeria for the exemplary support stressing that the 604,800 doses of the J&J vaccine mean a potential 604,800 fully vaccinated Nigerians.

In her remarks, the General Manager, of the Northern Region of MTN Nigeria, Hajia Amina Danbatta observed that in 2020, the world was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic which put pressure on various governments, adding that in conjunction with the African Union, and the African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team(AVATT) , MTN signed a Memorandum of Understanding to distribute vaccines to Africa, particularly in Nigeria where it operates.

She stated that MTN contacted the Federal Ministry of Health in October 2021 to express our intention in conjunction with AVATT and AU to deliver 604,800 Johnson and Johnson Covid-19 vaccine which will be administered to Nigerians.