Document Type : Original Article
Authors
- . David B. Olawade
- . Ojima Z. Wada 1
- . Aderonke Odetayo 2
- . Oluwabusayomi O. Akeju 3
- . Fiyinfoluwa T. Asaolu 4
- . Grace O. Owojori
1 Division of Sustainable Development, College of Science and Engineering, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar
2 School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, SAR
3 Department of Health Promotion and Education, University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria
4 Department of Biomedical Science, De Montfort University, United Kingdom
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIM: Vaccination has been appraised to be one of the most significant public
health achievements in human history. However, in countries like Nigeria, vaccine hesitancy is a
public health challenge that has consistently forestalled concerted efforts made by health authorities
to curb the spread of communicable diseases such as COVID‑19. To improve COVID‑19 vaccine
acceptance via targeted interventions, it is imperative to examine the public’s perception. Thus,
this study aims to evaluate vaccine hesitancy among university students in Southwestern Nigeria.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study utilized a descriptive cross‑sectional design.
A self‑administered questionnaire was administered to a total of 366 respondents who were recruited
using the convenience sampling technique and snowball approach. Data were entered and analyzed
using SPSS.
RESULTS: The majority of the respondents were over 18 years (88%) and were between their first
and third years (81%). Over a tenth of the respondents reported having at least a loved one that
had tested positive for the virus, while only 88% believed the virus is real. Furthermore, only 17%
of the students had a positive attitude toward the vaccine. Although 90% of the respondents were
aware of the administration of COVID‑19 vaccine in Nigeria, only around a quarter were willing to take
the vaccine, while 5.5% had been vaccinated. The major reasons for COVID‑19 vaccine hesitancy
highlighted by the respondents were concerns about vaccine side effects (21.3%), lack of trust in the
authorities (26.5%), vaccine efficacy (13.1%), and diverse mystical possibilities (39.1%).
CONCLUSION: The results indicate that a significant communication gap exists between the
respondents and local health authorities. To enhance the acceptance of COVID‑19 vaccines, extensive
and targeted health promotion campaigns are required to allay specific concerns raised by the public.
Keywords
Ewer K, et al. The early landscape of coronavirus disease
2019 vaccine development in the UK and rest of the world.
Immunology 2020;160:223‑32.
2. The New York Times. Coronavirus Vaccine Tracker 2020.
Available from: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/
science/coronavirus‑vaccine‑tracker.html. [Last accessed on
2021 Feb 18].
3. KerrJR, Schneider CR, Recchia G, Dryhurst S, Sahlin U, Dufouil C,
et al. Predictors of COVID‑19 vaccine acceptance across time and
countries. MedRxiv 2020. doi: 10.1101/2020.12.09.20246439.
4. Wang K, Wong ELY, Ho KF, Cheung AWL, Chan EYY, Yeoh EK,
et al. Intention of nurses to accept coronavirus disease 2019
vaccination and change of intention to accept seasonal influenza
vaccination during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic:
A cross‑sectional survey. Vaccine 2020;38:7049‑56.
5. Alfageeh E, Alshareef N, Angawi K, Alhazmi F, Chirwa G.
Acceptability of a COVID‑19 vaccine among the Saudi population.
Vaccines (Basel) 2021;9:226.
6. Sallam M. COVID‑19 vaccine hesitancy worldwide: A concise
systematic review of vaccine acceptance rates. Vaccines 2021;9:160.
7. Sharun K, Tiwari R, Iqbal Yatoo M, Patel SK, Natesan S,
Dhama J, et al. Antibody‑based immunotherapeutics and use
of convalescent plasma to counter COVID‑19: Advances and
prospects. Expert Opin Biol Ther 2020;20:1033‑46.
8. Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development.
Enhancing public trust in COVID‑19 vaccination: The role of
governments. OECD. 2021. Available from: https://www.oecd.
org/coronavirus/policy‑responses/enhancing-public‑trust‑in‑
covid‑19‑vaccination‑the‑role‑of‑governments‑eae0ec5a/. [Last
accessed on 2021 Sep 08].
9. Acheampong T, Akorsikumah EA, Osae‑Kwapong J, Khalid M,
AppiahA, AmuasiJH. Examining vaccine hesitancy in Sub‑Saharan
Africa: A survey of the knowledge and attitudes among adults to receive COVID‑19 vaccine in Ghana. Vaccines (Basel) 2021;9:814.
10. Ochu CL, Beynon CM. Hepatitis B vaccination coverage,
knowledge and sociodemographic determinants of uptake in
high risk public safety workers in Kaduna State, Nigeria: A cross
sectional survey. BMJ Open 2017;7:e015845.
11. Omotowo IB, Meka IA, Ijoma UN, Okoli VE, ObienuO, Nwagha T,
et al. Uptake of hepatitis B vaccination and its determinants
among health care workers in a tertiary health facility in Enugu,
South‑East, Nigeria. BMC Infect Dis 2018;18:1‑9.
12. Baiye B, Oguntola I. Will you take the COVID‑19 vaccine?
A household survey on the perception of Nigerians toward
COVID‑19 vaccine. Nigeria Health Watch. 2021. Available from:
https://nigeriahealthwatch.com/will‑you‑take-the‑covid‑19‑va
ccine‑a‑household‑survey‑on‑the‑perception‑of‑nigerians‑towar
ds‑a‑covid‑19‑vaccine/. [Last accessed on 2021 Oct 18].
13. Olomofe CO, Soyemi KV, Udomah BF, Owolabi AO, Ajumuka EE,
Igbokwe MC, et al. Predictors of uptake of a potential Covid‑19
vaccine among Nigerian adults. J Vaccines Vaccin 2021;12:442.
14. Oyeoku EK, Talabi FO, Oloyede D, Boluwatife AA, Gever VC,
Ebere I. Predicting COVID‑19 health behaviour initiation,
consistency, interruptions, and discontinuation among social
media users in Nigeria. Health Promot Int 2021;37:daab059.
15. Varma JK, Thamkittikasem J, Whittemore K, Alexander M,
Stephens DH, Arslanian K, et al. COVID‑19 infections among
students and staff in New York City public schools. Pediatrics
2021;147:e2021050605.
16. Mheidly N, Fares J. Leveraging media and health communication
strategies to overcome the COVID‑19 infodemic. J Public Health
Policy 2020;41:410‑20.
17. Mohamed NA, Solehan HM, Mohd Rani MD, Ithnin M,
Che Isahak CI. Knowledge, acceptance and perception on
COVID‑19 vaccine among Malaysians: A web‑based survey. PLoS
One 2021;16:e0256110.
18. Tobin EA, Okonofua M, Azeke A. Acceptance of a COVID‑19
vaccine in Nigeria: A population‑based cross‑sectional study.
Ann Med Health Sci Res 2021;11:1445‑52.
19. Reuters. Exclusive: Up to 1 million COVID vaccines expired in
Nigeria last month. Available from: https://www.reuters.com/
business/healthcare‑pharmaceuticals/exclusive‑up-1‑million
‑covid‑vaccines‑wasted‑nigeria‑last‑month‑2021‑12‑08/. [Last
accessed on 2022 Feb 01].
20. Adebisi YA, Alaran AJ, Bolarinwa OA, Akande‑Sholabi W,
Lucero‑Prisno DE. When it is available, will we take it? Public
perception of hypothetical COVID‑19 vaccine in Nigeria.
medRxiv. 2020. doi: 10.1101/2020.09.24.20200436.
21. Garcia LL, Yap JF. The role of religiosity in COVID‑19 vaccine
hesitancy. J Public Health (Oxf) 2021;43:e529‑30.
22. Ohia C, Bakarey AS, Ahmad T. COVID‑19 and Nigeria: Putting
the realities in context. Int J Infect Dis 2020;95:279‑81.
23. Nzaji MK, Ngombe LK, Mwamba GN, Ndala DB, Miema JM,
Lungoyo CL, et al. Acceptability of vaccination against COVID‑19
among healthcare workers in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo. Pragmat Obs Res 2020;11:103‑9.
24. IPSOS. Three in four adults globally say they would get a
vaccine for COVID‑19. 2020. Available from: https://www.
ipsos.com/sites/default/files/ct/news/documents/2020‑09/
global‑attitudes-on‑a‑covid‑19‑vaccine‑ipsos‑survey‑for‑w
ef‑2020.pdf. [Last accessed on 2021 Jan 12].
25. Africa CDC. Majority of Africans would take a safe and
effective COVID‑19 vaccine. https://africacdc.org/news-item/
majority-of-africans-would-take-a-safe-and-effective-covid-19vaccine/. [Last accessed on 2021 Jan 12].
26. Soares P, Rocha JV, Moniz M, Gama A, Laires PA, Pedro AR,
et al. Factors associated with COVID‑19 vaccine hesitancy.
Vaccines (Basel) 2021;9:300.
27. Olawade DB, Wada OZ, Asaolu FT, Odetayo A, Akeju OO,
Olorunsogbon OF. COVID‑19 and students’ mental wellbeing:
A cross‑sectional study across selected Nigerian universities.
J Educ Soc Behav Sci 2021;34:176‑86.
28. Olawade DB, Olorunfemi OJ, Wada OZ, Afolalu TD, Enahoro MA.
Internet addition among university students during COVID‑19
Lockdown: Case study of institutions in Nigeria. J Educ Hum
Dev 2020;9:165‑73.
29. Harapan H, Wagner AL, Yufika A, Winardi W, Anwar S, Gan AK,
et al. Acceptance of a COVID‑19 vaccine in Southeast Asia: A crosssectional study in Indonesia. Front Public Health 2020;8:381.
30. Al‑Mohaithef M, Padhi BK. Determinants of COVID‑19 vaccine
acceptance in Saudi Arabia: A web‑based national survey.
J Multidiscip Healthc 2020;13:1657‑63.
)