By RACHEAL ABUJAH

Nigeria has recorded 499 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the country’s coronavirus case load to 30,748.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) made the disclosure on its official twitter handle late on Thursday.

The NCDC said that as at the July 9, some 499new confirmed cases and five deaths were recorded in the country, noting however, that no new state had reported a case in the past 24 hours.

Giving a breakdown, the NCDC said that till date, 30,748 cases had been confirmed and that 12,546 cases had been discharged with 689 deaths recorded nationwide.

The agency said that the 499 new cases were reported in 24 states as follows: Lagos (157); Edo (59); Ondo (56); Oyo (31); Akwa Ibom (22); Borno (21) and Plateau (19).

According to the agency, Kaduna has (18); Katsina (18); Bayelsa (17); FCT (17); Delta (14); Kano (11); Rivers (10); Enugu (8); Ogun (6); Kwara (4); Imo (3); Nasarawa (2); Osun (2); Abia (1); Ekiti (1); Niger (1) and Yobe (1).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the NCDC startedfrom five testing laboratories in the beginning of the response to COVID-19 to 40 laboratories at present.

The NCDC said that it remained committed to working with every state to tackle the burden of COVID-19 across Nigeria.

“Collective responsibility is key,” it stated.

Meanwhile, the agency has restated that COVID-19is different from malaria.

“Underlying medical conditions always put an individual at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19,’’ the agency explained.

It advised Nigerians to adhere to recommended measures, including physical distancing, hand hygiene and use of face masks. (NAN)