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NPHCDA Dismisses Rumours of Electromagnetic Ingredients in COVID-19 Vaccines
National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) has said that COVID-19 vaccines do not contain electromagnetic ingredients that can cause side effects.
Dr Faisal Shuaib, executive director, NPHCDA, said this at a press briefing on Tuesday in Abuja.
The briefing was in reaction to reports on social media that electronic devices recognised people that had received the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.
The unsubstantiated reports claimed that anyone who received the vaccine would become magnetic and have their DNA altered and die from blood clots.
He said the typical dose was not large enough to contain a magnet, and that a magnet that could fit in a needle would not be powerful enough to attract anything.
“We are witnessing an increasing wave of COVID-19 misinformation and disinformation that should leave any patriotic Nigerian wondering how long mischief-makers want the world to remain in the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The creativity with which some people misinform others and spread misconceptions about COVID-19 vaccination calls for more deliberate, decisive, and consistent steps to counter as well as provide correct and accurate information.
“That will help more people to make informed decisions to get vaccinated against COVID-19,” said Shuaib.
He said it was unfortunate that the right of the public to true and accurate information on matters of collective concern was being threatened by a few others taking advantage of social media to mislead people about their health.
“Let me quickly state here that this breach of public right to true and accurate information about COVID-19 vaccination is a challenge to the media, which should be taken seriously.
“There are no ingredients in the AstraZeneca vaccines or any other COVID-19 vaccines that make people exhibit magnetic properties after being vaccinated for COVID-19.
“Scientifically, the claim does not make sense,” he explained.
The NPHCDA boss said it was evident that Nigeria had made significant progress towards utilising the 4 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine it got from COVAX facility, and that was why its vaccine rollout had been described as the best in Africa.
He said it was necessary for Nigerians to confront the false theorists if they really wanted the country and the world to overcome the pandemic and recover from its adversities.
“At the onset, it was claimed that COVID-19 was introduced to justify developing vaccines that would be used to depopulate Africans. Those who came up with this theory said that anybody who takes the vaccine would die immediately.
“Today, as we all can see, nearly 4 million doses of the vaccine have been administered in Nigeria and we have not recorded any case of death linked to the vaccination.
“On seeing this reality, the rumour mongers changed their narratives to saying that the vaccines used in Europe and America are not the same as the ones used in Africa.
“Again, as evidence has come to show, it is now clear that the COVID-19 vaccines used in Europe, America and elsewhere in the World are the same used in Nigeria and other countries in Africa,” he said.
According to the NPHCDA boss, the conspiracy theorists have gone silent about this claim, and are now saying that anyone who takes the vaccine will die after two years.
“Nigerians are predominantly a country of Muslims and Christians. We know that these religions are clear that no one knows the year of the day they will die. So why would we even pay attention to such spurious claims?
“Let us not forget that this same falsehood of children dying after vaccination was spread about Polio vaccine, but after many years, children who took polio vaccine are still alive and have grown into adulthood and having their own children, as expected.
“There has not been any case of a child’s death that is linked to polio vaccination, and many more children have been born to discount another claim that polio vaccination would lead to infertility,” he stressed.
He said about 2,495,632 people had been vaccinated with the first dose, while 1,370,130 had received the second dose of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in the country.
“Overall, Nigeria has successfully utilised 3.9 million doses, representing 96 per cent of the 4,024,000 doses of the vaccines received in the country.
“Nigeria is poised to achieve 100 per cent utilisation of the doses of vaccine it has received in the next few days. This is to ensure that people are protected against COVID-19, and normalcy is restored,” said Shuaib.
Meanwhile, Dr Walter Kazadi, country representative, World Health Organisation (WHO), said no individual should be victimised for their inability to access vaccines.
Kazadi said Nigeria was amongst the best countries in Africa in terms of the number of persons vaccinated.
Also speaking, Dr Peter Hawkins, a representative of UNICEF in Nigeria, said misinformation during a health crisis left people unprotected and vulnerable to the disease and spread fear and stigmatisation.
According to Hawkins, , information can be lifesaving, but people will only take on information that they trust.
Union Bank of Nigeria has secured certification under the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) version 4.0.1, a global standard for protecting payment card data.
The certification took effect on August 11, 2026, confirming that the bank’s systems for storing, processing and transmitting customers’ credit and debit card information meet stringent international security requirements.
PCI DSS certification is designed to reduce the risk of payment card data breaches and financial fraud while strengthening customer confidence in electronic payment systems.
The assessment covered key areas of Union Bank’s operations, including network infrastructure, card issuance, ATM and POS transactions, payment processing, reconciliation, settlement, chargebacks, dispute resolution and retail banking.
Union Bank was assessed and certified under the Service Provider category.
The certification process lasted a full year and involved quarterly assessments, with support from departmental, business and functional heads across the bank. Digital security firm Digital Encode supported the process, while the final independent audit was conducted by CyberCube, an accredited Qualified Security Assessor.
Yetunde B. Oni, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Union Bank, said the certification demonstrates the bank’s commitment to protecting customer information.
“The security of our customers’ information is central to everything we do at Union Bank. This certification reaffirms that our payment systems and processes meet a rigorous global standard, and it reflects the discipline of colleagues across the Bank who work every day to keep customer data safe.”
The renewal also ensures that Union Bank maintains continuous PCI DSS certification, in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s requirement for banks to sustain compliance without interruption.
New data from CFA Society Nigeria is reshaping how the country’s financial sector thinks about talent development, with Access emerging as the single largest source of CFA candidates in Nigeria, distinction industry watchers say signals a deeper shift in how leading institutions are building investment expertise from within.
In its Where Nigeria’s Finance Professionals Work series, published in a national daily, CFA Society Nigeria placed Access first among employers of CFA candidates nationwide, with 82 candidates enrolled in the programme, more than double the 38 recorded at the next-placed institution and well ahead of every other bank or financial services firm on the list.
Access also ranked second among employers of CFA charterholders, with 11 professionals who have completed all three levels of the Programme and met its experience and ethics requirements.
For an industry that has long measured itself by balance sheet size and branch count, the rankings point to a different kind of competition: one over who is building the deepest bench of certified, globally credentialed talent.
CFA Society Nigeria compiled the data from its Salesforce Membership Database as at June 2026, and described the exercise as a way of recognising employers whose people “bring rigour, integrity and global best practices into the workplace every day.”
Analysts following the sector say the outcome is notable less for the ranking itself than for what it suggests about talent strategy across Africa’s financial services industry. A single institution developing more aspiring charterholders than the rest of the market combined raises the floor for professional standards nationally, not just within one balance sheet.
Every candidate who advances through the CFA Programme adds to a shared pool of ethics-trained, analytically rigorous professionals that Nigeria’s capital markets, pension funds and asset managers all eventually draw from.
Access Holdings Group Chief Executive Officer Innocent C. Ike, commenting on the rankings, framed the achievement in terms of institution-building rather than recruitment: “Every candidate on that list represents our commitment to building institutions and professionals that endure.”
The remark echoes a broader thesis increasingly voiced by market observers, that talent depth, not scale alone, is what will determine which African financial institutions earn lasting global credibility.
That distinction sits at the centre of Access’s stated ambition to become the World’s Most Respected African Financial Services Group. If the CFA numbers are any indication, the Group’s route to that goal runs less through square metres of branch network and more through the calibre of the people sitting inside it, a bet that Nigeria’s finance professionals, and the institutions that will one day hire them, are already placing alongside Access.
Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has announced plans to introduce Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) baggage tracking technology across domestic and international airport terminals to tackle the growing problem of delayed, misrouted and missing luggages
Michael Achimugu, director, Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, NCAA, disclosed this at a stakeholder engagement forum in Lagos.
Achimugu said the RFID-enabled system would replace the traditional barcode-based baggage tracking framework and provide airlines and passengers with real-time visibility of checked luggage from check-in to final collection.
According to him, the technology would improve baggage traceability, reduce mishandling and strengthen accountability across the baggage-handling chain.
Unlike conventional barcode systems, RFID technology allows baggage to be automatically scanned at multiple points without requiring direct line of sight, enabling real-time tracking of luggage throughout its journey.
Achimugu said issues involving short-landed, missing, lost or damaged baggage had remained among the major complaints from air travellers, alongside flight delays.
He said the introduction of RFID technology was therefore aimed at improving baggage-handling standards and restoring passenger confidence in the aviation sector.
The NCAA said the initiative also aligns with IATA Resolution 753, which requires airlines to track baggage at key points during the passenger journey.
The authority expects the technology to provide more accurate information on the location of luggage, facilitate quicker resolution of baggage-related complaints and improve the overall passenger experience.
The NCAA said the initiative would also strengthen accountability among airlines and other stakeholders involved in baggage handling at Nigerian airports.
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