Nigeria on Monday recorded 238 new COVID-19 infections in 17 states as concerns about the safety of Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine the country recently received deepens.
The new daily figure is higher than the 120 cases reported a day earlier as the lowest figure this year, raising the total number of infections in the country to 160,895.
Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) made the disclosure via its official Twitter page on Monday night.
Read Also: Breaking: President Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo Receive COVID-19 Vaccine (Video)
The new cases were reported from 17 states – Lagos (72), Kwara (28), Bauchi (19), Kaduna (19), Edo (17), Ogun (15), Nasarawa (13), Rivers (10), FCT (9), Ondo (8), Akwa Ibom (5), Gombe (5), Niger (5), Osun (5), Plateau (4), Oyo (3), and Kano (1).
Lagos state recorded the highest figure with 72 new cases followed by Kwara and Bauchi with 28 and 19 infections respectively.
238 new cases of #COVID19Nigeria;
Lagos-72
Kwara-28
Bauchi-19
Kaduna-19
Edo-17
Ogun-15
Nasarawa-13
Rivers-10
FCT-9
Ondo-8
Akwa Ibom-5
Gombe-5
Niger-5
Osun-5
Plateau-4
Oyo-3
Kano-1160,895 confirmed
145,752 discharged
2,016 deaths pic.twitter.com/hZyyegeWai— NCDC (@NCDCgov) March 15, 2021
After reporting an average of 1,000 infections daily between December 2020 and January, infection figures have relatively dropped with daily cases hovering between 120 and 709 in the past three weeks.
Also, death toll from the disease has reduced a bit as no death was recorded on Sunday, March 14.
According to NCDC’s data, three fatalities were recorded, raising casualties tally to 2,016 in total.
Our discharges today include 120 community recoveries in Lagos State and 34 community recoveries in FCT managed in line with guidelines.
A breakdown of cases by state can be found via https://t.co/zQrpNeOfet pic.twitter.com/fg2JEcTIwU
— NCDC (@NCDCgov) March 15, 2021
Since the pandemic broke out in Nigeria in February last year, the country has carried out over 1.6 million tests.
More than two-thirds (145,752) of the over 160,000 people infected by COVID-19 in Nigeria have recovered after treatment.
Meanwhile, over 18,000 infections are still active in the country.
Read Also: Norway, Denmark, Iceland Suspend Use Of AstraZeneca COVID-19 Vaccine Over Blood Clot Fears
With regards to vaccination, Federal Government on Monday said at least 8,000 Nigerians have received their first dose of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine thus far.
Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Faisal Shuaib, while speaking at Monday’s briefing of Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, said no serious adverse effects have been reported from those who have been vaccinated.
He stated this in reaction to the continued suspension of the vaccine usage in some European countries over reports of blood-clotting.
Germany, France, and Italy on Monday joined the growing list of countries to temporarily suspend the administration of the vaccine.
On Sunday, the Netherlands joined Ireland in suspending the use of the vaccine following further reports of blood clots in people who have received it in Norway and Denmark.
Speaking on this, Dutch health ministry said the move was precautionary as there was no proof yet of a direct link between the vaccine and reports of possible side-effects from Norway and Denmark.
However, World Health Organization (WHO) and European regulators have assured that the vaccines are safe and expressed confidence in it.
Federal Government has also assured of its safety as the country distributes almost four million doses of the vaccine to states.
NPHCDA declared that Nigeria did not receive the batch of Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine reported to be causing blood clots in some European countries, adding that the specific batch in question, ABV5300, is not in circulation in the country.
