Nigeria recorded 169 new cases of COVID-19 from 12 states on Thursday, data from the country’s infectious disease agency, NCDC, showed last night.
With the latest update, Nigeria’s COVID-19 caseload reached 66,974, keeping it fifth on the list of African countries hit hardest, behind Ethiopia, Egypt, Morocco, and South Africa.
The death toll remains 1,169 after no new fatality was recorded on Thursday.
The 169 new cases were reported from 12 states. These are Kaduna (74), FCT (42), Lagos (17), Kano (8), Ogun (6), Oyo (6), Rivers (6), Ekiti (3), Bauchi (3), Katsina (2), Delta (1) and Ondo (1).
Amid fears of a possible second wave of COVID-19 in the country, the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 has advised Nigerians to suspend their Christmas and New Year travels to limit the risk of contracting the virus.
The weekly COVID-19 infections rate in the country increased for the fourth consecutive week, PREMIUM TIMES’ review of official data showed.
The increasing figures portend a second wave of the pandemic in Nigeria that some countries are already battling.
The NCDC has been warning Nigerians not to let down their guards against the disease, urging them to adhere to the safety protocols.
Despite the increased infections, however, Nigeria witnessed a significant reduction in deaths last week.
Nigeria recorded three deaths last week compared to nine persons that died from COVID-19 complications in the previous week.
Meanwhile, of the 66,000 total, about 62,585 persons have been discharged from hospitals, after treatment, while a little over 3,000 active cases remain in the country.
Currently, Nigeria has tested about 750,000 of its 200 million population.