Nigeria receives over 1 million meningitis vaccines from Gavi

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LAGOS (Reuters) -Nigeria has received more than 1 million meningitis vaccine doses from Gavi-funded global stockpile to combat an outbreak of the deadly disease in Africa’s most populous nation, Gavi said on Friday.

More than 70 people have died from the outbreak across several Nigerian states, with over 800 cases recorded, Gavi said.

Nigeria is one of the hotspots of the deadly disease in Africa, where at least 1,700 cases were reported last year, with more than 150 deaths recorded in seven states.

Gavi, a public-private partnership that helps fund vaccines for developing countries, said this first shipment would enable the launch of an outbreak response campaign targeting individuals aged 1–29 years, the most severely affected group.

The campaign will initially launch in Kebbi and Sokoto States, with plans to expand to Yobe State as additional doses arrive, Gavi said.

Nigeria became the first country in the world to roll out the “revolutionary” new Men5C vaccine against meningitis last year, according to the World Health Organization.

Outbreaks are common during the dry season, which runs from December to June, peaking between March and April, when low humidity and high dust levels prevail.

Meningitis is an inflammation of tissue surrounding the brain and spinal cord which can be caused by viral or bacterial infections. It spreads mainly through kisses, sneezes, coughs and in close living quarters.

(Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe; Writing by Chijioke Ohuocha; Editing by Alex Richardson)