Immunisation: Africa CDC donates $3.5m cold chain equipment to Nigeria

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has donated cold chain equipment worth $3.5 million to the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) to strengthen vaccine storage capacity and routine immunisation in the country.

The materials donated include 115 solar-direct-drive refrigerators, 234 solar-driven freezers, 1,000 temperature monitoring devices, and 778 vaccine carriers.

Dr Ronak Khan, Deputy Country Representative of UNICEF Nigeria, said the donation to Nigeria was the largest so far in Africa under the saving lives and livelihoods project.

She said the cold chain equipment was very modern and environmentally friendly.

Speaking while handing over the equipment in Abuja, the Director General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control, Dr Jean Kaseya, said the donation was done in collaboration with the MasterCard Foundation and UNICEF to support vaccination in Nigeria.

He said the organisation was committed to local manufacturing of vaccines because there is a need for Africa to manufacture its vaccines, diagnostics, and therapeutics, as well as to make vaccines available for children and others.

The Director General of NPHCDA, Dr Muyi Aina,  thanked the donors, saying it would enhance the country’s capacity to store vaccines and reach more communities.