Daily COVID Tracker: NCDC logs 31 cases in six states

Nigeria on Friday recorded 31 cases of COVID-19. Here are five updates about the pandemic this Saturday. 

Moderna recalls over 700k COVID vaccine doses in Europe

Moderna says it is recalling 764,900 doses of its COVID-19 vaccine made by Rovi, its contract manufacturer, after a vial was found contaminated by a foreign body.

The drugmaker, in a statement on Friday, said the impacted vial was punctured and was not administered.

“The lot is being recalled due to a foreign body being found in one vial in the lot manufactured at the Company’s contract manufacturing site, ROVI, in Spain,” the statement reads.

“Moderna, through its marketing authorization holder, Moderna Biotech Spain, S.L., and ROVI, were alerted to this issue through a product complaint from a vaccination centre in Malaga, Spain.

“The vial was returned for forensic assessment and investigation. This lot, which consisted of 764,900 doses, was distributed in Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden from 13-14 January 2022.

“Moderna conducted a cumulative search of its global safety database, and no safety concerns were reported in individuals who received the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine from this lot. To date, no safety or efficacy issues have been identified.

About one in 13 people in England had COVID-19 last week, says ONS

Office for National Statistics (ONS) says about one in 13 people in England, Wales and Scotland had COVID-19 last week.

ONS said the estimated rate in Northern Ireland was one in 16 people. 

According to ONS, the Omicron COVID variant was the dominant strain in all regions of the United Kingdom. 

Nigeria logs 31 COVID cases

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has reported 31 new COVID cases across the country.

The agency in its updates for April 8, 2022, said the infections were logged in five states and the federal capital territory (FCT).

A breakdown of the cases is presented below:

Lagos-20
Rivers-3
Abia-2
Delta-2
FCT -2
Kaduna-2

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The agency said 32 persons were discharged after they recovered from the infection. No death was reported as the fatality figure remains at 3,142.

The NCDC said the report includes data for April 7 and 8.

Nigeria now has a total of 255,606 confirmed cases and 249,718 recoveries.

Gavi secures $4.8 billion in funding for COVAX

The global vaccine alliance Gavi has secured $4.8 billion in funding pledges for the vaccine-sharing scheme COVAX. 

The secured fund is below the group’s earlier target. The organisation has said it will require an additional $5.2 billion to continue distributing COVID-19 vaccinations on a large scale as part of its worldwide vaccination campaign for poorer countries.

“It is really putting us in a very comfortable position,” Marie-Ange Saraka-Yao, Gavi’s managing director for resource mobilisation, said. 

South Africa targets undocumented people for COVID-19 vaccination

South Africa says it will target the “undocumented, vulnerable and those in remote areas” in the coming COVID-19 vaccination campaign.

The department of health disclosed this on Friday.

“A key feature of this Vooma Vaccination Weekend will include the vaccination of vulnerable people, including undocumented citizens and individuals who have lost their identity documents,’’ Foster Mohale, spokesperson for the health department, said.

“Our message as a country has always been that no one will be left behind because no one is safe unless we are all safe. The COVID-19 vaccine is the most effective way of ensuring this is achieved.”