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NAFDAC approves Pfizer-Biotech COVID-19 vaccine for use in Nigeria

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has approved Pfizer-Biotech COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use in Nigeria. The NAFDAC’s approval is coming a few months after the agency gave a nod for the use of the Oxford-Astrazeneca jab in the country.

The Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye announced this during a virtual meeting which held in Lagos on Friday, explaining the vaccine is for emergency use in the country. Responding to concerns over storage facilities for the Pfizer vaccine, Adeyeye said based on new development from the manufacturers, the vaccine can now be stored between -15% to -25 %, which is equivalent to freezer temperature. She stated that the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) has capacity to store the vaccine.

She ruled out possibility of getting the vaccine through private health facilities, saying only Nigeria through the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) can import the vaccine into the country. Similarly, she said the vaccine can also be brought to the country through the COVAX facility, which ensures that poor and developing countries have access to COVID-19 vaccines. Explaining the implication of approval for emergency use , Adeyeye said it is not a full approval. Such approval covers the “period of getting people vaccinated and gathering data about the adverse events following immunisation.”

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