In the eleventh hour of 2019, the world found itself with a novel disease called coronavirus. The outbreak of the virus started in the Chinese town of Wuhan, specifically in Hubei. Covid-19, which is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is highly contagious and easily transmitted from one person to another through contact with the droplet of an infected person(s) (Omaka-Amari et al., 2020). Hence, its sudden spread across the world within a short time (Mustapha et al., 2021). Particularly among those with cases like cancer, heart conditions, kidney disease, obesity, excessive smoking, type 2 diabetes and sickle cell disease (Owhonda et al., 2022). Before the end of the first quarter of 2020, the novel disease spread to over 213 countries with over 7.5 million total confirmed cases out of which 421,801 lost their lives to Virus (Enitan et al., 2020).
In Nigeria, the case was confirmed on February 20, 2020, and later spread to other parts of the country. thenceforth, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) strategised ways to sensitise people on the various preventive measures via a variety of communication channels alongside concerted efforts to develop a vaccine for the disease (Reuben et al., 2021). The immediate measures put in place to halt the spread of Covid-19 pandemic include frequent hand washing, isolation and quarantine, social distancing, lockdowns, wearing of face masks in public domains and the use of alcohol-based hand sanitisers. Although the aforementioned measures flattened the disease curve, the pandemic kept increasing and changing form from delta variant to Omicron and others (Alqudeimat et al., 2021).
Moreover, an outbreak of deadly diseases that metamorphose into global pandemics like the coronavirus, developing a safe and effective vaccine is crucial to curtailing the spread and effects of the disease particularly in the most vulnerable areas (Mudenda et al., 2022). Since the outbreak of the disease and the identification of SARS-CoV-2 as the causative agent of the novel disease, microbiologists, epidemiologists immunologists and other relevant experts in various research centres and pharmaceutical companies bent on relentless research to come up with an acceptable and effective vaccine as a long term measure to cushion the perpetuation of the pandemic (Ahmed & Aondover, 2022). The mass vaccination programme commenced in early December 2020, thenceforth, it continued and doses administered are updated daily on Covid-19 dashboard of WHO (Harapan et al., 2020).
Ordinarily, vaccines are very safe with mild adverse reactions that protect the vaccinated persons against the possibility of contracting the target infectious diseases that may be encountered in course of day-to-day activities (Aondover, 2020). Betsch et al., (2019) added that vaccinations are among the most effective ways to arrest morbidity and mortality from severe infectious diseases at individual and societal levels. Vaccines are categorised into routine vaccines for review before travelling; vaccines for geographically specific vaccines and on-demanded vaccines (Aondover & Phillips, 2020).
Harapan et al., (2020) observe that vaccines have played a significant role in the management and development of global health for over two centuries and succeeded in the safe reduction of the scourge of diseases including measles, polio and smallpox and saved millions of lives even before Covid-19. However, since the essence of coming up with a vaccine is to check the spread of a contagious disease by infusing it into the systems of those deemed vulnerable to the infectious disease, the success of every vaccine developed is dependent on the readiness of the vulnerable population to realise its importance and accept it (Pate et al., 2020).
Unfortunately, despite the successful efforts of various companies to create Covid-19 vaccine to cushion the spread of the disease and mitigate the intensity of the pandemic, the vaccination faces hesitancy and outright rejection which in turn threaten global public health. Caserotti et al., (2020) lament that vaccination programmes against Covid-19 could alleviate the spread of the virus but, vaccine phobia and scepticism hinder the uptake of the vaccine. Vaccine hesitancy is a growing phenomenon hindering public health experts’ efforts to rid the world of deadly infectious diseases by inoculating most if not all of the vulnerable against such diseases (Dror et al., 2020).
Within this context, despite the studies conducted on Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy, there is a dearth of studies investigating relationships between social media use, awareness and acceptance of Covid-19 vaccine. This study, therefore, examined the relationships between social media use, awareness of Covid-19 vaccine and hesitancy or acceptance among undergraduate students in Kano. The study is based on the premise that Kano State, Northwestern Nigeria is one of the states that suffered a Pfizer experimental drug in 1996, which led to the death and permanent disabilities of children who were treated with the drug during a meningitis outbreak in Kano in 1996.
Therefore, this study examine social media use in the context of awareness of Covid-19 vaccine and acceptance among undergraduate students in Kano State, Nigeria. The study is guided by the following objectives:
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To examine social media use among undergraduate students in Kano State.
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To ascertain the awareness of Covid-19 vaccine among undergraduate students in Kano State.
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To find out the acceptance of Covid-19 vaccine among undergraduate students in Kano State.
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To find out why undergraduate students in Kano State hesitate Covid-19 vaccine.
The strengths of this study can be attributed within the context of expanding the frontier of existing knowledge in the study area, thereby serving as a fundamental reference point for subsequent researchers in the area. The findings also validate the significance and relevance of the theory and methodology employed in understanding the proceeding of social science inquiry. The limitations to the study is the inability to select all the students in the selected universities as most of them are not active on social media, thereby limiting the study to only students that are active on social media and are aware of Covid-19 vacine.