The National Primary Healthcare Development Agency provided the list of states.

The World Health Organization and other international bodies, as well as vaccine development companies such as Pfizer and Moderna, have suggested that patients receive booster shots to increase their protection against the coronavirus disease.

The demand for booster shots increased with the discovery of the Omicron variant.

The Federal Government stated on December 9, 2021, through the Director-General of the NPHCDA, Dr. Faisal Shuaib, that the booster administration would begin the following day.

Shuaib, who described the booster shots as an opportunity to get additional protection against COVID-19, had advised eligible Nigerians to get them.

He said, “Following the detection of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in Nigeria, the Federal Government reviewed the country’s vaccination program and resolved to introduce the booster dose, using the Pfizer Bio-N-Tech vaccine across the country.

“This will take effect as from Friday, December 10, 2021. It is pertinent to reiterate the fact that the Nigerian COVID-19 vaccination program is science-driven.

“Evidence has shown that the booster dose further increases protection against the virus. Eligibility for the booster dose includes being 18 years and above and is fully vaccinated with either two doses of AstraZeneca, Moderna or Pfizer Bio-N-Tech or a single dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.”

However, the NPHCDA stated that 13 states had yet to commence administering the booster shot, even though the booster vaccine has been available for weeks.

While states like Akwa Ibom, Jigawa, and Taraba were said to have commenced the administration, it was gathered that less than five persons had taken the shots.

The 13 states with no record of booster shot administration are Abia, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Ekiti, Gombe, Imo, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Rivers, Sokoto, Yobe, and Zamfara.

Attempts to reach Shuaib on why the states had not commenced the administration of the booster shots proved abortive as calls and messages forwarded to his line remained unanswered as of the time of this report.

Meanwhile, a Professor of Medical Virology, University of Maiduguri, Marycelin Baba, in an interview with The PUNCH, faulted the state governments and the citizens alike for failing to make good use of the opportunity to get booster shots.

Baba, who spoke in a telephone interview with
Speaking on the need to speed up the vaccination drive in the country, she said, “The states and the citizens should be blamed. If the vaccines are available, then they should be blamed. Boosters give you additional protection, so why should you ignore the opportunity?

“The reason why we keep having new variants is that people refuse to get vaccinated and the more viruses mutate then, the more dangerous they become at times. Boosters offer more protection and that is why people are being required to have them.