From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
President Muhammadu Buhari Friday in Brussels, Belgium, welcomed the designation of Nigeria as one of the six countries in Africa designated as manufacturing bases for the COVID-19 vaccine.
According to a statement by Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, Buhari while also calling for collaboration to address the effects of the pandemic, noted that with the addition of Nigeria to the four countries earlier approved for the vaccine production on the continent, his administration’s efforts to change the selection that the country considered unrepresentative of the needs, capabilities and population distribution in Africa has yielded the desired result.
In his contribution to the Roundtable on Health Systems and Vaccine Production at the ongoing 6th Europe-Africa Summit, President Buhari said:“I am delighted to receive the news of the selection of Nigeria among recipients of MRNA Vaccine technology transfer. We shall ensure the best use is made of the opportunity. Nigeria also offers to host the Bio-manufacturing Training hub proposed by World Health Organisation (WHO). We commit to providing support to make the hub functional in the shortest possible time.