JUST IN: FG Opens Portal For COVID-19 Vaccine Registration

The Nigerian government has launched an e-registration portal where citizens and residents can register to be vaccinated against the Coronavirus.

The Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, announced this ahead of arrival of the country’s first batch of AstraZeneca vaccines on Tuesday.

At a virtual launch of the role out, the minister explained that the electronic management of the process was aimed at ensuring coordination and accountability in the process.

The Federal Government launched the vaccination process under what it called the “T.E.A.C.H” strategy through the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA).

The portal is accessible through the website of the NPHCDA at http://nphcda.gov.ng

It reiterated that frontline workers would be the first set of people to be dosed with the vaccines.

“In less than 24 hours, the first batch of AstraZeneca vaccines will arrive in Nigeria from the COVAX Facility and will be deployed to vaccinate, first our critical frontline health care workers, who are providing essential care.

“Our goal is to introduce COVID-19 vaccine in a phased and equitable manner, based on advice of the WHO and the experience we observe other countries to have made, and ultimately vaccinating all eligible Nigerians within the next 2 years, to ensure herd immunity.

“T.E.A.C.H. is an acronym for a 5-point strategy developed by the vaccination implementing arm of the Federal Ministry of Health & the NPHCDA, out of its many years of vaccination Implementation experience in Nigeria”

The minister said the acronym stands for: “T: Traditional Vaccination Campaign Approach; E: Electronic Self-Registration by Eligible Nigerians; A: Assisted Electronic Registration of Eligible Nigerians; C: Concomitant Vaccination alongside Electronic Registration; and H: House-to-House Electronic Registration.”

The minister added that, “No private hospital or organization has experience with handling this type of vaccine and certainly no experience in vaccine application that NPHCDA has.

“Vaccines that are not approved by NAFDAC will be determined as dangerous, and will be seized by Customs Services and NAFDAC, who are on high alert for illegal vaccine importation.”