By OLUWAFUNKE ISHOLA

President Bola Tinubu has inaugurated the Lagos Cold and Dry Storage Hub, a future-ready vaccine storage and distribution cold chain facility designed to serve 90.7 million Nigerians by 2035 and beyond.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Lagos Vaccine Hub, funded through a World Bank IDA Credit under the IMPACT Project, is designed to serve 90.7 million Nigerians across the South-West and South-South geopolitical zones.

The zone has a combined catchment covering the states of Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, Delta, Edo, Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, and Cross River.

Tinubu was represented at the inauguration of the facility by Dr Muyi Aina, Executive Director, National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA).

Aina noted that the unveiling of the Lagos Vaccine Hub reflected the Federal Government’s commitment to strengthening primary healthcare, closing infrastructure gaps, and ensuring that quality health services reach every Nigerian community.

“For many years, Nigeria’s vaccine supply chain depended on one National Strategic Cold Store and six zonal stores – a structure that could no longer adequately serve our growing population and expanding immunisation needs.”

In response, he said, the Federal Government, through the NPHCDA, developed the Three-Hub National Immunisation Supply Chain Model-modern megastores in Lagos, Abuja, and Kano.

According to him, the stores are designed to decentralise vaccine storage and strengthen distribution nationwide.

“Today, the Lagos Hub proudly becomes the first to be commissioned.”

Aina emphasised that the achievement demonstrates what is possible when government and development partners work together with a shared purpose.

He disclosed that Gavi, UNICEF, and the World Health Organisation contributed technical expertise and global partnership support for the project.

“The NPHCDA remains proud to have coordinated the implementation of this strategic national investment.

“The Lagos Hub is only the beginning.

“The Abuja Hub, which will serve the North-Central and South-East zones, is currently under construction, while the Kano Hub for the North-West and North-East zones will commence later this year.”

When completed, he said, these three hubs will provide Nigeria with a modern national vaccine distribution network built for the future, to ensure that every Nigerian child, regardless of location, has access to safe and potent vaccines.

Similarly, Dr Ibrahim Mustafa, Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Primary Health Care Board, said the hub was a major investment in Nigeria’s immunisation programme to improve capacity for vaccine security.

Mustafa said it would further strengthen routine immunisation, outbreak responses, and the overall resilience of the public health system.

“The impact of this facility will not only be felt among our children and vulnerable population, who depend on safe and potent vaccines for protection against vaccine-preventable diseases.”

Mustafa said Lagos State had the largest number of zero-dose children in the country, appealing to the NPHCDA for stronger collaboration to reduce the figures.

Dr Maureen Ugochukwu, Representative of Vaccine Alliance (GAVI), commended NPHCDA on the achievement, stressing that the end-point should be the consistent availability of quality vaccines in adequate quantity at every service delivery point in Nigeria.

Also, Emediong Ekere, Vaccine Cold Chain Logistics Consultant at UNICEF, said the development would optimise cold chain storage solutions for vaccines and other medical commodities, while improving efficiency in the distribution of immunisation materials nationwide.

“We strongly believe as UNICEF that this will optimise cold chain storage solutions for both the vaccines and the dry commodities, and also by extension, this impact will be felt across health centres, LGA cold stores, and all health facilities where immunisation services are provided.”

Similarly, Dr Amina Abdul-One Mohammed, National Programme Manager, IMPACT Project, said the hub would provide faster access to life-saving vaccines, fewer stockouts, stronger outbreak response, and a supply chain that would not be overwhelmed by the demands placed on it.

According to her, the facility comprises two principal structures – the Cold Store which houses six WHO/PQS-compliant temperature-controlled rooms, comprising three Walk-In Cold Rooms operating at 2°C to 8°C.

“It also has two rooms switchable between cold and freezer modes for operational flexibility, and one permanent Walk-In Freezer Room running at -15°C to -25°C.

“The Dry Store provides 15,312 cubic metres of storage capacity across 2,552 square metres of floor space -equipped with 125 racking units, 484 HDPE pallets, electric forklifts, reach trucks, and four hydraulic dock levellers that enable thermally controlled loading and unloading at scale”.

She disclosed that the primary power of the building was delivered by a natural gas generator, which was deliberately chosen to reduce emissions, cut long-term fuel costs, and position the hub as a responsible piece of national infrastructure aligned with Nigeria’s gas utilisation agenda.

She added that a diesel generator provided secondary redundancy, ensuring that cold chain continuity was never at risk. (NAN)