The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has made a commitment to provide funding for the development and research of drugs and vaccines to help in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic
Godwin Emefiele, governor of the CBN, said that if Nigerian were to wait for foreign countries to develop for remedies for COVID-19, it will be the last in the queue to receive such remedies.
Once the locally developed vaccines and drugs are validated by the health authorities, the CBN will step in and do the needful for the sake of more than 200mn Nigerians now confronted by COVID-19, the governor added.
“To encourage greater research and development in Nigeria of drugs and vaccines that would help prevent the spread of the virus, the CBN is developing a framework under which grants and long term facilities will be provided to researchers, science institutions and biotechnology firms to develop the Nigerian vaccine.”
“The Central Bank of Nigeria challenges Nigerian scientists at home and in the diaspora to go back to their laboratories and develop a Nigerian vaccine,” Emefiele added.
