The United States government has donated 10,000 doses of JYNNEOS Mpox vaccine to the National Primary Health Care Development Agency ( NPHCDA) towards vaccinating Nigerians against the disease.
Speaking while handing over the vaccines to the agency on Tuesday, the US Ambassador to Nigeria , Richard Mills said the vaccines were donated through the U.S Agency for International Development (USAID).
He said it would support the federal government’s response to the current mpox outbreak which has been declared a global emergency by the World Health Organization ( WHO).
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) had confirmed 40 Mpox cases out of 830 suspected cases across states and the Federal Capital Territory( FCT) .
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Mills said the US government recognizes that a public health threat in one place is a global health concern for all, and has prioritized support for global health security, particularly in countries that are most vulnerable.
He said, “I would like to commend the Government of Nigeria, for being proactive in leveraging support and leading a coordinated effort to respond to the outbreak before it escalates. The Federal Government of Nigeria has also shown its steadfast commitment to strengthening global health security by developing a comprehensive National Mpox Vaccination Strategy and Deployment Plan. Nigeria’s commitment to global health security is reflected in its marked improvements in the ability to assess, prevent, detect, and respond to public health threats.”
Executive Director of the NPHCDA, Dr Muyi Aina, said the doses donated by the US government were the first batch of the Mpox vaccines, adding that their arrival marks the count down to its first introduction in Nigeria.
He said, “The arrival of the 10,000 doses of the Mpox vaccine donated by the good people of the United States of America to the Federal Republic of Nigeria is a critical step as we mount our response and preparedness towards the virus.”
He said Nigeria had a significant outbreak in 2022 and that at that time, the country didn’t have access to the vaccines.
However, he said that brought into sharp focus the real threat that MPox poses to Nigeria.
He added that the WHO ‘s recent declaration of Mpox as a public health emergency of further emphasizes the global nature of this challenge.
Mpox, also known as Monkey pox, is a rare viral zoonotic disease endemic to the rainforest countries of central and western Africa.
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