Nigeria has become the first country in the world to introduce the revolutionary new Men5CV vaccine against meningitis, the World Health Organization (WHO) said. This vaccine protects against five types of this disease. Nigeria is one of the hotspots of the deadly disease in Africa. Between last October and mid-March this year, there were 1,742 suspected cases in the country, of which 153 deaths were recorded across seven states in Nigeria.
According to WHO, a 50 percent increase in annual cases was recorded last year in 26 African countries, which are considered meningitis hyperendemic countries. The Director General said that this effort by Nigeria brings us one step closer to our goal of eliminating meningitis by 2030. WHO data shows there were 1,742 suspected cases in the country between last October and mid-March this year, with 153 deaths recorded across Nigeria’s seven states.
