António Guterres, the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, has made a clarion call to world leaders to begin bracing up for possible future pandemic that may affect the world, clarifying that Covid-19 might not be the last to affect mankind.
Guterres made the call in his message to mark the International Day of Epidemic Preparedness which was the second edition of the event which is aimed at gearing countries to prevent, prepare, and partner effectively to erect structures that can tackle epidemics on a global and local scale.
The unexpected series of events that unfolded multiple variants of Covid to the world has left a lesson for mankind; there is a dire need to invest in solid frameworks that can help nations to prevent, detect, and swiftly respond to the outbreaks of infectious diseases.
The first-ever International Day of Epidemic Preparedness was held last year, with the World Health Organisation (WHO) working closely with governments to support efforts to build strong emergency and epidemic preparedness systems, as part of an overall approach to advance universal health coverage and strengthen primary healthcare systems.
The UN boss said: “COVID-19 demonstrated how quickly an infectious disease can sweep across the world, push health systems to the brink, and upend daily life for all of humanity.
“It also revealed our failure to learn the lessons of recent health emergencies like SARS, avian influenza, Zika, Ebola, and others. COVID-19 will not be the last pandemic humanity will face. Infectious diseases remain a clear and present danger to every country.”
Meanwhile, the Omicron variant of the virus continues to spread in Nigeria, with less than 0.5% of COVID vaccines administered in the country. The same levels of low vaccination are obtainable in most other developing countries, resulting in what the UN referred to as a “threat to the entire planet.”
“An outbreak anywhere is a potential pandemic everywhere”, said the Secretary-General.
The National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), however, said approximately 10 million Nigerians have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. The Executive Director, Dr. Faisal Shuaib, in an update, said Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Jigawa, and Osun states were the leading states and contributed 36 percent to the number of vaccinated persons.
“As of December 26, 9,765,729 eligible persons targeted received the first dose, while 4,363,620 got the second dose,” he affirmed
He asserted that despite the brewing distrust in the available Covid-19 vaccines in the country, vaccines are still the best way to prevent the spread of the virus, and save lives. He also mentioned that the Federal Government had secured early access for more doses of the covid vaccines.