More than 1,000 die of meningitis in Nigeria — and there is a shortage of vaccines
Dakar — Hit by one of its deadliest meningitis outbreaks in years, with more than 1,000 deaths, Nigeria could struggle to contain future epidemics due to a shortage of vaccines, health experts said. Africa’s most populous country has recorded about 14,500 suspected cases and at least 1,150 deaths so far this year — up from 33 in 2016 — in two thirds of its 36 states, said the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control. In April, Nigeria launched a mass vaccination campaign in its north-western states, but there is a limited global supply of affordable and long-lasting vaccines for the C strain of meningitis, said medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). At least 1.3-million meningitis C vaccines have been acquired to date, according to the government, yet aid agencies say several more million are needed to contain the outbreak. Previous vaccination campaigns to protect against frequent meningitis A outbreaks — more than 2,000 people died in 2009 — have allowed the C strain to become ...
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