Daily COVID Tracker: Nigeria records 159 cases in 14 states — and zero deaths

Nigeria on Tuesday recorded 159 cases of COVID-19. Here are five updates about the pandemic this Wednesday. 

Moderna to sell 110m COVID doses to AU 

Moderna says it will sell up to 110 million doses of its COVID vaccine to the African Union (AU).

The drugmaker said 15 million of the doses will be delivered by the end of 2021 while another batch of 35 million is expected for delivery by the end of March 2022.

“The Company is prepared to deliver the first 15 million doses in the fourth quarter of 2021, 35 million doses in the first quarter of 2022, and up to 60 million doses in the second quarter of 2022. All doses are offered at Moderna’s lowest tiered price, in line with the Company’s global access commitments,” Moderna said in a statement.

“We are pleased to be able to supply our vaccine to the African Union through this agreement, which was facilitated in part by the White House team. This is the first step in our long-term partnership with the African Union.”

US FDA advisers back Pfizer/BioNTech COVID vaccine for children

The US Food and Drugs Administration on Tuesday voted to recommend the Pfizer and BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines for children aged 5 to 11.

The development is seen as an important regulatory move to get most children back to school and boost in-person learning.

The recommendation would have to be approved by the FDA after which an advisory panel of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will give its recommendation on the administration of the vaccine.

Vietnam to vaccinate children against COVID-19 

Vietnam says it will start vaccinating children with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine next month, according to the health ministry.

The ministry said children aged 16 and 17 will be offered the shot with parental consent, “in the areas that had been under movement restrictions and densely populated areas where the infection risks are high”.

Nigeria records 159 infections

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) says 159 fresh COVID infections have been recorded.

The agency, in an update on Tuesday, said the fresh cases were recorded in 13 states and the federal capital territory (FCT).

According to the agency’s data, FCT and Lagos topped the chart with 28 cases each, followed by Nasarawa with 25 cases and Plateau with 24 cases.

Other states with new infections include Kwara (22), Delta (8), Kano (8), Rivers (7), Edo (2), Bauchi (2), Bayelsa (2) Kaduna (1), Sokoto (1), and Taraba (1).

The agency said the report includes eight confirmed cases reported from Delta for October 25 to 26 and 25 cases reported from Nasarawa for October 24.

The NCDC said 129 patients were discharged on Tuesday after they recovered from the infection

No death was recorded on Tuesday, as the total death toll remains 2,884.

To date, Nigeria has confirmed a total of 211,330 cases and 202,803 recoveries.

Bahrain authorises Sinopharm COVID vaccine for children aged 3-11

Bahrain has authorised Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine for children between 3 and 11 years.

The vaccination exercise is scheduled to begin on October 27, according to a statement by the state media office.

The Middle East country said the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine would soon be approved for children between the ages of 5 and 11.