Report emerged on Tuesday that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) donated 10,000 Jynneous vaccines to Nigeria to help combat the spread of Mpox.
This donation is part of a broader effort to mitigate the impact of the virus, which has seen 39 confirmed cases across 33 states and the Federal Capital Territory, with no deaths recorded, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).
Dr. Muyi Aina, Director General of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NHPCDA), announced that the distribution of these vaccines would commence immediately, prioritizing states with the highest number of cases and frontline workers.
He expressed gratitude to the US government, stating that the vaccines "will help save lives and curb the spread of monkeypox across Nigeria."
The NCDC has intensified surveillance efforts to swiftly detect and respond to new cases. Dr. Jide Idris, Director General of the NCDC, highlighted that all port health services across Nigeria's five international airports, ten seaports, and 51 land/foot crossing borders are on high alert.
Specific states, including Lagos, Enugu, Kano, Rivers, Cross-River, Akwa-Ibom, Adamawa, Taraba, and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, have also been put on high alert.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently declared the Mpox surge in Africa a global public health emergency, driven by the significant rise in cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the virus's spread to neighboring countries.
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated, "Today, the emergency committee met and advised me that in its view, the situation constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. I have accepted that advice." This declaration follows the African Union's health watchdog's similar declaration of a public health emergency due to the escalating outbreak.
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