Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Jul 6:42:179.
doi: 10.11604/pamj.2022.42.179.34135. eCollection 2022.

COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in six geopolitical zones in Nigeria: a cross-sectional survey

Babatunde Oluwatosin Ogunbosi  1 , Michael Abel Alao  2 , Olayinka Rasheed Ibrahim  3 , Adaeze Chikaodinaka Ayuk  4 , Rasheedat Mobolaji Ibraheem  5 , Chioma Laura Odimegwu  4 , David Chibuike Ikwuka  6 , Patricia Akintan  7 , OreOluwa Morakinyo  2 , Ayomide Toluwanimi Adeyemi  2 , Ridwan Muhammad Jega  8 , Temitayo Folorunso Olowookere  9 , Olaseinde Emmanuel Bello  10 , Bilkis Iyabo Owolabi  11 , Abejegah Chukwuyem  12 , Lawan Maryah Bukar  13 , Aliu Rasaki  14 , Amudalat Issa  15 , Atana Uket Ewa  16 , Regina Oladokun  1 , Olusegun Olusina Akinyinka  1
Affiliations

COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in six geopolitical zones in Nigeria: a cross-sectional survey

Babatunde Oluwatosin Ogunbosi et al. Pan Afr Med J. .

Abstract

Introduction: the high expectations that heralded the development of COVID-19 vaccines has been plagued with vaccine hesitancy (VH). The prevalence and associated factors of COVID-19 VH in the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria are explored.

Methods: using a cross sectional survey, a pre-tested and validated questionnaire on a "Google form" was distributed via social media platforms and hard copies in the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria. Included, using a chain-reference sampling technique, were healthcare workers (HCW), university students and adults in the general population. Participants who expressed unwillingness to receive COVID-19 vaccine in the event of an available vaccine were considered to have vaccine hesitancy. Frequency and percentage were used to describe categorical variables. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to assess for factors associated with VH. Level of significance was set at 5% on two-sided tails test.

Results: among 1615 respondents, mean (standard deviation) age was 36.7 (11.3) years, and 847 (52.4%) were males. More than half were healthcare workers (943; 58.4%), 97.4% had at least secondary level of education, and majority 60.5% belonged to the upper social class. The prevalence of VH was 68.5% (1107/1615), and 67.2% preferred foreign manufactured COVID-19 vaccines. On multivariable regression analysis, residence in Northeast (AOR 6.01, 95% CI 2.24, 16.10) and Northwest (AOR 3.33, 95% CI 1, 48, 7.48) geopolitical zones, the Igbo ethnic group (AOR 1.88, 95% 1.10, 3.22), Christians (AOR 1.86, 95% 1.10, 3.14), nurses (AOR 3.50, 95% CI 1.25, 9.80), pharmacist (AOR 5.82, 95% CI 2.12, 16.32) and participants without confidence in foreign vaccines (AOR 4.13, 95% CI 2.99, 5.72) were at higher likelihood of VH.

Conclusion: vaccine hesitancy is high among adults in Nigeria, with higher likelihood among the Igbo ethnic group, Christian faith, residence in Northeast and Northwest geopolitical zones and those with an aversion to foreign-made vaccines. Targeted interventions are required for the desired COVID-19 vaccine uptake rate and herd immunity.

Keywords: COVID-19; Nigeria; vaccine hesitancy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
flow chart of the recruited study participants and prevalence of vaccine hesitancy
Figure 2
Figure 2
factors associated with vaccine hesitancy on multivariable regression analysis
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Lu H, Stratton CW, Tang Y. Outbreak of pneumonia of unknown etiology in Wuhan, China: the mystery and the miracle. J Med Virol. 2020 Apr;92(4):401–402. - PMC - PubMed
    1. World Health Organization WHO coronavirus (COVID-19) dashboard. Accessed Dec 20 2021.
    1. Tumban E. Lead SARS-CoV-2 candidate vaccines: expectations from phase III trials and recommendations post-vaccine approval. Viruses. 2020 Dec 31;13(1):54. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Dror AA, Eisenbach N, Taiber S, Morozov NG, Mizrachi M, Zigron, et al. Vaccine hesitancy: the next challenge in the fight against COVID-19. European journal of epidemiology. 2020;35(8):775–9. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Larson HJ, Jarrett C, Eckersberger E, Smith DMD, Paterson P. Understanding vaccine hesitancy around vaccines and vaccination from a global perspective: a systematic review of published literature, 2007-2012. Vaccine. 2014;32(19):2150–9. - PubMed

Substances