The Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire has received samples of Russia’s COVID-19 vaccine from Russia’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Alexey Shebarshin.

According to a press statement made available to newsmen by the Federal Ministry of Health on Friday 4th August 2020, the Ministry’s Director of Information, Media and Public Relations, Olujimi Oyetomi, said the Russian envoy made the delivery during a visit to the ministry in Abuja.

Accordingly the Minister of Health Dr Osagie Ehanire “quickly referred” the vaccine to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, and the Nigeria Institute of Pharmaceutical Research and Development, and others for review.

Adding that “Nigeria has been participating in series of knowledge exchange and contacts with different research bodies and countries to find solutions to the COVID-19 challenge and has contacted the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Nigeria for right of access immediately the Russian COVID-19 Vaccine was announced.”

On his part, the Russian Federation Ambassador to Nigeria His Excellency Alexey L. Shebarshin, who admitted that he is a non-scientist, said he was in the Federal Ministry of Health to formally hand over the Russian-made Vaccine against COVID-19 to Nigeria with an aide memoir which explains the details for Nigerian teams to study and get ready for further researches, patronage and application.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) had said it would review the effectiveness of the vaccine when Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin, said they had approved a vaccine offering “sustainable immunity” from the virus.