Yemi Obafemi
The United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Richard Mills, has applauded the government of Nigeria for their leadership in working with USAID to secure and deliver Jynneos Monkeypox 10,000 doses in combating mpox in Nigeria.
Jynneos is a vaccine that has received FDA approval for the prevention of smallpox and Mpox in individuals 18 years and older who are deemed to be at risk of contracting Mpox.
Mill stated this during the official handover of the Mpox vaccine to Nigeria in Abuja, according to him th vaccines will support the government of Nigeria’s response to the current Mpox outbreak.
He said: “I’m very pleased to be here today on the occasion of this handover of 10,000 doses of Mpox vaccines donated by the U.S. government through the U.S. Agency for International Development. These vaccines are going to support the government of Nigeria’s response to the current Mpox outbreak, which has been declared, as we just heard, a global emergency by the World Health Organisation.
“The U.S. government believes that a global public health threat in one place, a public health threat in any part of the world, is a global health threat for all of us. So that’s why we have prioritised support for global health security, particularly in countries that are most vulnerable.”
“I salute the government for doing that. Let me say the U.S. government, through USAID, remains a committed partner to the government of Nigeria, a partner to strengthen systems and effectively present, detect, and respond to public health threats.
“Our projects that we have with the Nigerian government strengthen the capacity of frontline healthcare workers and disseminate accurate communication messages on health care, health care issues of all kinds to Nigerian communities. I am very pleased to know that this is a timely donation that will reach the affected areas across the country and those who are most vulnerable to Mpox infection.
“I applaud the government of Nigeria once more for your leadership in working with USAID to secure and deliver these 10,000 doses of lifesaving vaccines.”
Also speaking, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Muhammad Pate who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Daju Kachollom, appreciated the US government for donating the vaccines.
He said: “This is a spirit of cooperation and collaboration through the years, and this vaccine that has been brought to us will be of great help to us. The Federal Ministry of Health knows the importance of having a healthy nation so all the policies that we put in place and the collaborations have to do with ensuring that our citizens are healthy.
“The minister says everything we do in health matters to him and Nigeria is very fortunate to have such a potential as the Coordinating Minister and Dr Tunji Alausa as the Minister of State for Health, and together, we are transforming the health sector.
“Thank you for the 10,000 doses and we look towards getting more, and I want to thank our development partners, USAID, PEPFAR, WHO, UNICEF, all the UN organisations. I want to say thank you for the collaboration, and this will go a long way to help those who are in need.
“We all know how large our population is, and we need to ensure that we meet every disease in the world, especially those that have to do with public health concerns, and on this note, I would like to say thank you very much.”
