WEDNESDAY- 6th October, 2021: The United Kingdom has declared that it did not include Nigeria on its list of countries with valid Covid-19 certificates and that fully vaccinated Nigerians travelling to the UK will have to undergo a 10-day isolation period on arrival in the country.
In a statement made by the UK government on Monday, it said, “we are taking a phased approach to recognising vaccines administered by other countries and territories, building on the success of the pilot with the U.S. and Europe.
“Fully vaccinated residents in other countries not yet part of the inbound policy, as well as those partially vaccinated, will still have to take a pre-departure test, PCR tests for day 2 and day 8 after arrival, and self-isolate for 10 days, with the option to test to release after 5 days.
“The UK government is continuing to work with international partners as we seek to more regularly expand the policy to further countries and territories.”
The Director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr JohnNkengasong said last month that the UK’s stance could increase vaccine hesitancy across Africa.
Dr. John also said, “We do not understand why the UK has taken this position,” and that it is “a message that creates confusion within our population… creating more reticence, reluctance for people to receive vaccines.”
Nkengasong also said “This message doesn’t really speak to solidarity and co-operation that we all believe are the cornerstone and ingredients for us to emerge from this pandemic together.”
Meanwhile, the Director of National Primary Health Care Development Agency, (NPHCDA), Dr. Faisal Shuaib, has said on Tuesday that Nigerians travelling to Britain will still be isolated for seven days as UK Government is yet to comprehensively review Nigeria’s vaccination certification programme.
The Executive Director of NPHCDA, Dr. Faisal Shuaib, disclosed this on Tuesday at a briefing on the progress of COVID-19 vaccination in Nigeria.
Shuaib also said the agency was optimistic that by the time Nigeria’s COVID-19 vaccination programme certification was assessed, it would be approved by the UK government.
Nigeria and all other African countries are missing on the list.
