WHO reports 25 new COVID-19 cases in Benue-Nigeria
As of December 13th, the 36 states that make up the federation, as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), had reported a total of 266,675 confirmed cases and 3,155 deaths.
Twenty-five new coronavirus cases have been reported by the World Health Organization (WHO) in Benue State, North-Central Nigeria.
At a one-day Civil Society Organizations and Media Engagement/Orientation conference on the COVID-19 rampup in Makurdi, the state capital, Ogechukwu Chigbo, the state’s WHO surveillance officer, revealed this information.
Ms. Chigbo issued a warning, pointing out that COVID-19 is still widespread in Nigeria and highlighting the need of individuals using the vaccinations’ accessibility to protect themselves.
The Nigeria Center for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) stated in August that it was keeping an eye on the newly discovered EG.5 and BA.2.86 subvariants of the Omicron strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which had been identified in 51 different countries.
As of December 13, the NCDC’s COVID-19 dashboard indicated a total of 266,675 confirmed cases and 3,155 deaths documented in 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (‘FCT,’ but it has not yet reported the new cases in Benue State).
WHO stresses immunization
Speaking further, Ms. Chigbo stated that since this is the time of year that outbreaks are recorded, “it is imperative to ensure that everybody gets vaccinated.” And the vaccination is the reason why fewer people are contracting the infection.
“It is even more important that we all get vaccinated because this year we recorded 25 cases in Benue, even though there were no fatalities,” she continued.
She emphasized that in order to increase state coverage, the international organization has chosen to incorporate the COVID-19 vaccination into the regular immunization program.
We have been doing a number of COVID-19 campaigns. Since we are not able to reach at least 70% in Benue, we have had stages of it and have encountered some difficulties. It is preferable to have the vaccine included as part of the usual immunization, she said.
“We acknowledge that a lot of people have unfavorable opinions about the vaccine, but it is safe. You won’t get a serious infection thanks to the vaccination. For this reason, we should all get vaccinated; vaccinations are free and available at all medical facilities that offer standard immunizations.
Updates on vaccinations
As of October 31, 70% of eligible Nigerians were fully vaccinated against COVID-19, while 80% of eligible Nigerians were at least partially vaccinated against the virus, according to the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA).
According to NPHCDA, 17.5 million Nigerians who have gotten all recommended vaccinations have also received booster doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.