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UNICEF Says Inequality of COVID-19 Vaccine, holding world back

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UNICEF Says Inequality of COVID-19 Vaccine, holding world back

UNICEF Says Inequality of COVID-19 Vaccine, holding world back

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has lamented that the inequality in availability of COVID-19 vaccine is holding the world back.

Commenting on recent analysis that showed that G20 countries have received 15 times more COVID-19 vaccine doses per capita than countries in sub-Saharan Africa*,  UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore said: “Vaccine inequity is not just holding the poorest countries back – it is holding the world back.”

Speaking ahead of the G20 Leaders’ Summit this weekend, Fore said. “As leaders meet to set priorities for the next phase of the COVID-19 response, it is vital they remember that, in the COVID vaccine race, we either win together, or we lose together.”

Ahead of the G20 Leaders’ Summit this weekend, 48 UNICEF Africa ambassadors and supporters have also united, calling on countries to deliver doses by December.

The analysis, conducted by science analytics company Airfinity has exposed the severity of vaccine inequity between high-income and low-income countries, especially in Africa.

It found that doses delivered to G20 countries per capita are 15 times higher than doses delivered per capita to sub-Saharan African countries; 15 times higher than doses delivered per capita to low-income countries; and three times higher than doses delivered per capita in all other countries combined.

A statement by UNICEF on Wednesday said wealthy countries with more supplies than they need have generously pledged to donate these doses to low- and middle-income countries via COVAX but these promised doses are moving too slowly, insisting that of the 1.3 billion additional doses countries have pledged to donate, only 194 million doses have been provided to COVAX.

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It lamented that African countries in particular have largely been left without access to COVID-19 vaccines, with less than 5 percent of the African population being fully vaccinated, leaving many countries at high-risk of further outbreaks.

The statement said: that as leaders prepare to meet for the G20 Summit in Rome this weekend, 48 UNICEF Africa ambassadors and supporters from across the continent have united in an open letter, calling for leaders to honour their promises to urgently deliver doses, writing that “the stakes could not be higher.”

The letter’s signatories, including Angelique Kidjo, Arlo Parks, Davido, Tendai Mtawarira, Femi Kuti, Tony Elumelu, Ramla Ali, Kate Henshaw, Winnie Byanyima and others, are calling on leaders to donate the pledged vaccines by December, along with the necessary resources to turn the vaccines into vaccinations.

The statement lamented that: “Every day Africa remains unprotected, pressure builds on fragile health systems where there can be one midwife for hundreds of mothers and babies,” the letter reads. “As the pandemic causes a spike in child malnutrition, resources are diverted from life-saving health services and childhood immunization. Children already orphaned risk losing grandparents. Disaster looms for sub-Saharan African families, four out of five of whom rely on the informal sector for their daily bread. Poverty threatens children’s return to school, protection from violence and child marriage.”

UNICEF Says Inequality of COVID-19 Vaccine, holding world back

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Chieftaincy dispute causes chaos in Muye village in Niger

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Chieftaincy dispute causes chaos in Muye village in Niger

By: Zagazola Makama

A renewed chieftaincy tussle in Muye village, Lapai Local Government Area of Niger State, has sparked violent confrontations between rival supporters, prompting swift intervention by security operatives.

Zagazola Makama gathered that the crisis began around 6:20 p.m. on Thursday when the deposed village head, Alhaji Mohammed Abdulkadir Maigari II, forcefully returned to Muye and broke into the palace.

The incident provoked tension among residents, especially after supporters of the current Dakachi confronted the deposed monarch. The situation was immediately brought under control by a team of security personnel from Lapai.

However, Zagazola learnt that the situation escalated on Friday morning when supporters of both camps clashed again, leading to a free-for-all fight that disrupted public peace in the community.

Security sources were swiftly deployed to Muye to restore normalcy.

“The combined security teams have brought the situation under control. Monitoring and surveillance operations are ongoing to prevent further breakdown of law and order,” the source said.

No casualties or arrests have been officially confirmed as of the time of filing this report.

Chieftaincy dispute causes chaos in Muye village in Niger

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Eid-el-Kabir: IPCR Calls on Nigerians to Peace, Harmony

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Eid-el-Kabir: IPCR Calls on Nigerians to Peace, Harmony

By: Michael Mike

Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) has called on Nigerians to promote peace and harmony in their communities, recognizing that peace is essential to national development and progress.

The advice was given by the Director General of the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR), Dr. Joseph Ochogwu, in his message on Eid-el-Kabir.

The Institute, while extending warm greetings to Nigerians, wished them a joyous and peaceful celebration, marked by love, compassion, and unity.

The Institute while noting that Sallah is a significant occasion in the Islamic calendar, symbolizing the values of sacrifice, gratitude, and community, emphasized that the spirit of Sallah should guide Nigerians in their interactions with one another, fostering a culture of peace, tolerance, and understanding.

The IPCR urged Nigerians to promote peace and harmony in their communities, recognizing that peace is essential to national development and progress, while
encouraging individuals to embrace the values of Sallah, including forgiveness, empathy, and kindness, in their daily lives.

According to IPCR, peace is critical to promoting national stability and cohesion.

The Institute also urged Nigerians to use this period of Sallah celebration to address conflicts and promote dialogue, which could help to build trust and understanding among Nigerians and also contribute to a more peaceful society.

It recognized that the country’s many ethnic and religious groups can work together to build a more harmonious society, celebrating their differences and promoting a culture of tolerance.
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Community Leader Seeks Tinubu’s Urgent Intervention in Incessant Plateau Killing

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Community Leader Seeks Tinubu’s Urgent Intervention in Incessant Plateau Killing

By: Michael Mike

A community leader and the Waziri Mushere of Bokkos Local Government Area of Plateau State, Chief Yohana Margif has expressed dismay over the incessant killing of innocent citizens of the community.

Margif made this known in an interview with journalists on Thursday in Abuja.

He called on President Bola Tinubu to urgently intervene to halt what he described as genocide against the people, which he said was being perpetrated by suspected herdsmen.

Margif also called on Malam Nuhu Ribadu, the National Security Adviser, and other security chiefs in the country, to rein in the alleged culprits.

He said: “I would like to draw the attention of the topmost leadership in Nigeria to the deteriorating dire security situation in Plateau, particularly in Mushere Chiefdom of Bokkos LGA.

“I urge President Tinubu to take immediate decisive action to halt these endless and senseless killings, protect lives and properties, and secure the future of the Mushere people, and other victims of obvious genocide against the people.

“Herdsmen are killing our innocent people, burning their homes, looting their foodstuff, property, livestock, and taking over their ancestral lands,” he said.

According to the Abuja-based real estate mogul, the attacks and attendant killings have intensified recently since the onset of this year’s farming season.

Margif further said that the people had been displaced from their villages and ancestral homes and were forced to become internally displaced persons in the country.

He emphasised that the situation required immediate intervention by all stakeholders in order to prevent further escalation and inflict an irredeemable harm by wiping out the entire community from the surface of the earth.

He lamented that: “Since President Tinubu’s administration began, Plateau State has witnessed an unprecedented escalation of violence and loss of lives.

“This is the current sad reality. Our people are constantly under the threat of the enemy’s bullets and can’t sleep with two eyes closed due to the perpetual unleashing of violence against them by external forces.

“Something urgent must be done to stem the tide of violence and end this war against the people in order not to
harm this administration’s reputation,” Margif said.

In the past couple of days, suspected herdsmen militia killed no fewer than 35 people in the localities of Hokk, Pangkap, Fokoldep, Kopmur, Margif, Horop, Mbor, Mushere and Kwahas localities in Mushere Chiefdom.

Chairman, Bokkos Community Peace Observers, Kefas Mallai, who confirmed the killings to newsmen, said the victims included a 70-year-old Pastor of COCIN LCC Kwakas-Mushere, Mimang Lekyil, who was attacked and killed in the church.

He said that the pastor’s wife was also shot in the leg and was admitted at the Jos University Teaching Hospital for treatment, he said.

“Bokkos has never been this insecure, with the people being butchered as we are currently witnessing,” Lilian Madaki, from the Mushere community told journalists.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Emmanuel Adesina, also confirmed the incident in a statement saying security forces including police and military personnel, had been deployed in the affected communities.

Community Leader Seeks Tinubu’s Urgent Intervention in Incessant Plateau Killing

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