Daily COVID Tracker: NCDC reports 49 infections, and Nigerians to receive second vaccine dose

Nigeria on Monday recorded 49 cases of COVID-19. Here are five updates about the pandemic this Tuesday. 

FG to administer the second dose of vaccine to Nigerians 

The federal government says the second dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine will soon be administered to those who received the first shots.

Faisal Shuaib, the executive director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), disclosed this at the presidential steering committee (PSC) on COVID-19 briefing held on Monday.

Shuaib advised those who had received the first dose to check their vaccination cards for the date of their second dose.

FG imposes midnight curfew, reintroduces restriction on mass gathering

The federal government has reintroduced the restriction on mass gatherings following a surge in COVID-19 cases recorded in some countries.

At its briefing on Monday, the PSC on COVID-19 also announced an immediate nationwide curfew from midnight till 4 am.

Mukhtar Mohammed, the committee’s national incident manager, said event centres and non-essential public places such as night clubs will remain closed till further notice.

He said religious gatherings are to be limited to less than 50 percent capacity to ensure physical distancing while social events such as weddings and parties are to be attended by not more than 50 persons.

Mukhtar added that violators of the directive would be prosecuted.

US regulator approves Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 12 to 15 

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Pfizer and BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for use in people ages 12 to 15.

Peter Marks, director of the FDA centre for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said states may be able to vaccinate the new group after US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention Advisory Committee meets to consider the expansion.

Joe Biden described the authorisation as “a promising development in our fight against the virus”.

He added: “If you are a parent who wants to protect your child or a teenager who is interested in getting vaccinated, today’s decision is a step closer to that goal.”

Nigeria records 49 cases of COVID-19

Nigeria has recorded 49 new cases of COVID-19 in three states and the federal capital territory (FCT).

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) disclosed this in its update for May 10.

The states that recorded new infections are FCT (27), Lagos (11), Enugu (8), and Oyo (3).

According to the agency, 21 persons were discharged on Monday after recovering from the virus.

The discharges “include 5 community recoveries in the FCT managed in line with guidelines”.

Meanwhile, the agency said no one died from the virus for the fifth day, leaving the total fatality toll at 2,065.

Since Nigeria’s index case in February 2020, 165,468 cases of COVID-19 and 156,318 recoveries have been confirmed in the country.

Malaysia imposes nationwide lockdown as COVID cases surge

Malaysia has imposed a new nationwide lockdown to curtail the spike in COVID-19 cases.

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said the country is facing a third wave of the pandemic, and that it could trigger a national crisis, adding that the lockdown measures will subsist until June 7.

Yassin said there will be no more social gatherings while inter-state, inter-district travel and educational institutions will be shut.

Malaysia has seen a surge in COVID infections in recent weeks. The country reported 3,807 new cases on Monday bringing the total cases to 444,484 cases and 1,700 deaths.

COVID-19 IN NIGERIA