ACCRA, Ghana (CU)_Ghana became the first country to receive COVID-19 vaccines through the World Health Organization’s COVAX program on Wednesday (Feb 24).
According to a joint statement issued by UNICEF Representative in Ghana, Anne-Claire Dufay and WHO Representative to Ghana, Dr Francis Kasolo, as part of an initial tranche of deliveries, the West African nation received 600,000 doses of the AstraZeneca/ Oxford vaccine licensed to the Serum Institute of India.
They noted that the shipment represented the beginning of what is expected to be the largest vaccine procurement and supply operation in history.
“This is a momentous occasion, as the arrival of the COVID-19 vaccines into Ghana is critical in bringing the pandemic to an end. The only way out of this crisis is to ensure that vaccinations are available for all,” the statement read.
The country’s minister of health, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, led a government delegation to receive the consignment, which arrived at 7 am GMT at Kotoka International Airport, in Ghana’s capital Accra.
The African continent, in comparison to other regions, has been slow to start vaccinating their populations, with only a handful of countries having begun vaccination programmes.
“We will not end the pandemic anywhere unless we end it everywhere,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, after Ghana received the shipment.
He added that the delivery on Wednesday was “a major first step towards realizing our shared vision of vaccine equity”.
Meanwhile, UK’s foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, described Wednesday’s rollout as a “huge step forward in ending this pandemic.” “As one of the biggest donors to COVAX, the UK is ensuring that more than one billion vaccine doses will be sent to 92 countries so that no one is left behind in this global fight.”
The COVAX initiative, supported by the WHO and a group of international vaccine advocacy groups, aims to accelerate the development and manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines, and to guarantee fair and equitable access for every country in the world. So far, more than 180 countries have signed up for the initiative, which will fund the vaccine supply for 92 low and middle-income countries.
