To stop the spread of the virus, it urged Nigerians to adopt safety precautions and called on government to intensify testing. “In the last eight weeks, the test positivity ratio has continued to increase,” the NCDC added.

It was reported that no less than 260,339 confirmed cases were recorded in Nigeria as of July 22, 2022. Even though 253,566 cases were successfully discharged, 3,147 people died as a result of complications from the virus.

As of Friday, the World Health Organisation reported that there were over 565 million cases globally, out of which over 6.3 million persons lost their lives. About 9,181,118 cases had however been confirmed in Africa. It noted also that over 12 billion doses of vaccines of the virus, covering first, second, and booster jabs, had been administered as of July 19.

NCDC data obtained on Saturday by our correspondents from the latest situation report of the disease however revealed that testing in the country had reduced by 53.42 percent.

According to the NCDC data, the country recorded 478 new cases between July 16 and 18, with Lagos State having 325 cases; Rivers State, 60; Federal Capital Territory, 29; Delta State, 25; Edo State, 17; Oyo State, eight; Kano State, six; Bayelsa four; and Ekiti four.

From July 19 to 20, not less than 235 confirmed cases were recorded in six states and the FCT. Lagos had 138; Rivers, 36; Delta, 21; Kaduna, 17; FCT, 13; Edo, nine; and Kano, one case.

Also, from July 21 to 22, there was a sharp increase in the number of cases as the country recorded 619 new cases from Ekiti (364); Lagos (62); Rivers (58); Delta (27); FCT (22); Oyo (19); Cross River (16); Abia (14); Kano (12); Bayelsa (11); Nasarawa (eight); Gombe (three); Plateau (two) and Bauchi (one).

Additionally, it was discovered that more people were testing positive both on their way in and out of the country. The NCDC reported that 28 out of the 858 international travelers who were tested between weeks 25 and 26 had tested positive, as opposed to 17 out of the 904 people who were tested during weeks 23 and 24.

In addition, 4,447 international outbound travelers were tested in weeks 25 and 26, and 133 of them had tested positive, as opposed to 52 out of 3,987 in weeks 23 and 24.

Though no death was reported during the referenced period, the NCDC noted, “In the last eight weeks, the test positivity ratio has continued to increase with the highest increase being in this reporting week. The majority of the cases were reported from Lagos, FCT, Rivers, and Kano states.”

The NCDC, however, said hospitalization and fatalities had remained low, suggesting the recorded cases were mostly mild to moderate. It noted in its report that it had reached out to states to increase their testing, adding that the addition of laboratories was ongoing.

According to the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency, as of Friday, 26,127,761 persons have been fully vaccinated in Nigeria, representing 23.4 percent of the total eligible population, while 11,819,911 have been partially vaccinated.

In an effort to ensure a quick vaccination drive and herd immunity in the various countries across the world, it was reported earlier that Nigeria missed the 40% herd immunity deadline set by global leaders.