Willingness to Accept COVID-19 Vaccine and Its Determinants among Nigeria Citizens: A Web-based Cross-sectional Study

Background: The peculiarity in Nigerians’ demographic, socio-economic and cultural pattern necessitated the need to explore potential COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. This study investigated the determinants of willingness to receive COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria.

Methods: An online cross-sectional study among the general population in Nigeria. Data were collected using an electronic questionnaire. A total of 368 individuals participated in the research. The outcome variable was willingness to accept COVID-19 vaccine coded as “Yes=1 and No=0.” Basic socio-demographic information of participants and other information related to COVID-19 were obtained. Stata MP 14 was used for the statistical analysis. Descriptive statistics were presented, test of association were carried out using chi square and a binary logistic regression was used to assess the determinants of willingness to accept COVID-19 vaccine. All analyses were performed at 5% level of significance.

Results: The mean age of the respondents was 29.4 + 9.65 years. Majority of the study participants were female (58.9%), Yoruba (74.7%) and dwellers of urban area (68.5%). Also, 85.6% have attained tertiary level of education. Two-fifth (40.5%) of respondent reported their willingness to take the COVID-19 if made available. Majority (69.8%) of those that are willing to take the vaccine would prefer a live attenuated form and 39.6% would prefer the vaccine administered intramuscularly.

Age group≥40 years (AOR: 5.20, CI: 1.02- 26.41), currently married (AOR: 2.81, CI: 1.05 – 7.53) and susceptibility to COVID 19 infection (AOR: 2.52, CI: 1.21 – 5.26) were associated with likelihood of willingness to accept COVID-19 vaccine.

Conclusion: Despite the fact that majority were at risk of COVID-19 infection, willingness to receive COVID-19 vaccine was low among Nigerians. Level of maturity in terms of age and marriage as well as susceptibility to COVID-19 infection increased the likelihood of accepting COVID-19 infection. In Furtherance, younger ones, unmarried and non-susceptible individual may require more efforts tailored towards enrichment of understanding about the importance of COVID-19 vaccine in other to improve the acceptance of COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria.