The Federal Government stated on Wednesday that vaccinations supplied to Nigeria through COVAX and AVAT had short expiration shelf lives and may expire before being used.
Dr. Osagie Ehanire, Minister of Health, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
According to him, with only a few months’ shelf life, the country has only a few weeks to use them.
He stated that donors frequently give out unused vaccines before they expire in their own stock.
Ehanire added that logistical bottlenecks in the country could cause some of them to expire before being used.
“Nigeria has recently benefited from the generosity of several countries, primarily European, who have offered us doses of COVID-19 vaccines from their stockpiles, free of charge, via the COVAX or AVAT facility.”
“These contributions are always acknowledged and gratefully accepted.”
“However, some of them have residual shelf lives of only a few months, giving us only a few weeks to use them after deducting time to transport, clear, distribute, and deliver to users.”
“Logistical bottlenecks can occur when such vaccines arrive back-to-back or in large quantities.”
“We appreciate donors’ generosity, but we also communicate the challenge of short shelf lives,” he said.
Some manufacturers, according to Ehanire, offered to extend the vaccine’s shelf life by three months.
He stated that the practice, while accepted by experts, was rejected by the Federal Ministry of Health because it did not meet its standards.
According to the minister, the donation of surplus COVID-19 vaccines with expiring shelf lives to developing countries has been a topic of international debate.
He stated that developing countries such as Nigeria accepted the vaccines due to vaccine supply gaps and the fact that they were free, saving scarce foreign exchange procurement costs.
“This is not a Nigerian problem; it is a problem that many low- and middle-income countries face,” he added.
Donors, he says, recognize the need to distribute unused vaccines before they expire in their own stock.
To reduce the risk of expiration, Ehanire said donors needed to start the process early and create a well-oiled pathway for prompt shipment and distribution through the COVAX and AVAT facilities.
He stated that with better coordination, vaccines would not have to expire in the inventories of Donors or Recipients.
The Minister, on the other hand, assured that Nigeria did not dispense vaccines with a validity period that exceeded the labelled expiry date, but that it continued to adhere to rigorous standards.
He stated that Nigeria had used the majority of the over 10 million short-shelf-life doses of COVID-19 vaccines that had been supplied in good time, saving N16.4 billion (US$40 million) in foreign exchange.
“The vaccines that had expired had already been withdrawn and will be destroyed in accordance with the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration, and Control (NAFDAC),” he said.
According to Ehanire, FMOH regularly shares its experience with partners and now politely declines all vaccine donations with a short shelf life or those that could not be delivered on time.
He stated that the long-term solution to preventing such incidents was for Nigeria to produce its own vaccines, with vaccines produced having an expiration date of at least 12 months.
“This is why the FMOH is working with stakeholders to expedite the development of indigenous vaccine manufacturing capacity.”
According to Ehanire, this is a goal that the ministry is working hard to achieve. (NAN)