Daily COVID Tracker: Nigeria to get 4m vaccine doses and Jordan sacks ministers for breaching protocol

March 1, 2021 8:21 am

Boss Mustapha, chairman of the presidential task force (PTF) on COVID-19, says Nigeria will receive four million doses of vaccine on Tuesday. Here are five updates about the pandemic this Monday.

Two Jordan ministers resign for breaching of COVID-19 rules

Samir Mobeideen, interior minister, and Bassam Talhouni, justice minister in Jordan, were forced to resign on Sunday for breaching the COVID-19 protocol.

The ministers were said to have attended a dinner party at a restaurant that violated the COVID-19 restrictions which their ministries are mandated to enforce.

Their appearance in the public banqueting room was also said to have disregarded social distancing rules.

According to a government source, Bisher al-Khasawneh, prime minister of Jordan, accepted their resignation after they were accused of “having violated the emergency law” — days after it was in place to curtail the surge of infections driven by a more contagious variant of the virus.

Tawfiq Krishan, deputy prime minister in charge of local administration, was appointed as the new interior minister, while Ahmed Ziyadat, state secretary for legal affairs, was named as justice minister.

Police have arrested dozens of people for breaking stay-at-home orders in recent weeks and shut hundreds of shops and businesses as crackdown measures to limit the spread of the infection.

Johnson & Johnson to start testing vaccine in children

Johnson and Johnson (J&J) has announced plans to start testing its COVID-19 vaccine in children.

Speaking with the Centre for Disease (CDC) advisory committee on Sunday, Macaya Douoguih, head of clinical development and medical affairs, said the trial will involve children from 17 years and below.

“We will conduct several immunogenicity and safety studies in children from 17 years of age down to neonates,” she said.

“The study in adolescents, we hope, will open next week. We are also anticipating a study in pregnant women in the second and third trimesters toward the end of March, early April.”

Last week, Pfizer announced plans to start testing its vaccine in children between the age of five and 11 — after it enrolled kids of 12 and 15 in its adolescent trial in January.

US authorises J&J vaccine for emergency use

The United States has formally authorised J&J COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use.

The authorisation brings to three the number of vaccines approved in the country to fight the pandemic.

The vaccine is said to be a cost-effective alternative to the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, and can be stored in a refrigerator instead of a freezer.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Saturday Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccine offered strong protection against serious illness, hospitalisations and death.

“The authorisation of this vaccine expands the availability of vaccines, the best medical prevention method for COVID-19, to help us in the fight against this pandemic, which has claimed over half a million lives in the United States,” Janet Woodcock, FDA acting director, said.

20 million people receive first dose of vaccine in UK

The United Kingdom says more than 20 million people in the country have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.

Boris Johnson, UK prime minister, described the feat as a “huge national achievement”, adding that “every jab makes a difference in our battle against COVID”.

The government plans to offer all adults the first jab by the end of July.

Four million doses of COVID vaccine expected in Nigeria on Tuesday

Boss Mustapha, chairman of the presidential task force (PTF) on COVID-19 and secretary to the government of the federation, says Nigeria will receive four million doses of vaccine on Tuesday.

“I can assure you that the vaccines are coming and they are coming very quickly barring any change in the delivery plan that has been released to us by UNICEF,” Mustapha said.

“We believe that our vaccines should depart India on the 1st of March, 2021 at 10:30 pm and arrive in Abuja on the 2nd of March by 11:10 am.”

Last Friday, Walter Kazadi Mulombo, World Health Organisation (WHO) representative in Nigeria, said the country was expecting four million doses of the vaccine this week.

He added that 14 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine would be delivered to Nigeria in total.

COVID-19 IN NIGERIA