Abujah Rachel
Lagos and Rivers States were in the lead as Nigeria records 636 new cases of COVID-19 and 11 deaths linked to the virus on Friday.
However, the statistics of the virus in the country released by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC indicated that the 636 additional infections on Friday, were 117 fewer than the 753 cases recorded on Thursday.
According to the NCDC, the additional 636 infections were confirmed in 16 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Lagos State, the epicentre of the COVID-19 in Nigeria, recorded the lion share with 291 cases, followed by Rivers with 117 cases.
Taraba state registered 58; Akwa Ibom 54; Kwara 28; Ekiti and Ogun recorded 14 infections each.
The FCT recorded 13 new cases; Oyo State 11; Edo 9; Osun 6; Bayelsa 5; Delta and Gombe 4 each; Abia and Plateau 3 each and Sokoto State 1.
The NCDC, which made this known via its verified website on Saturday morning, said the country’s fatality toll from the pandemic now stood at 2,211.
COVID-19 cumulative cases in Nigeria now stand at 181,297.
The agency points out that a multi-sectoral national Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), activated at Level 2 is coordinating the national response activities.
The NCDC said that since the outbreak of the pandemic in Nigeria in February 2020, it had tested more than 2,589,130, samples for the disease.
It noted that 12,366 cases were still active in the country with many being managed at accredited isolation centres while others were being managed at home.
It disclosed that a total of 149 patients recovered from the disease and were discharged from various isolation centres on Friday.
The NCDC put the total recoveries nationwide since the onset of the pandemic at 166,709.