Ghana becomes the first country to receive COVAX vaccine

The organization plans to deliver about two billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines globally by the end of the year.

A total of 600,000 doses of the vaccine produced by AstraZeneca and Oxford University arrived in Accra, the capital of Ghana on Wednesday.

“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. We thank all partners that are supporting the COVAX Facility to deliver safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines to all countries quickly and fairly,” said a statement by UNICEF Representative in Ghana, Anne-Claire Dufay and WHO Representative to Ghana, Dr Francis Kasolo on the arrival of the first COVID-19 vaccines in Ghana.

“The shipments also represent the beginning of what should be the largest vaccine procurement and supply operation in history,” the statement noted, emphasizing that the COVAX Facility plans to deliver close to 2 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines this year.

“We are pleased that Ghana has become the first country to receive the COVID-19 vaccines from the COVAX Facility. We congratulate the Government of Ghana – especially the Ministry of Health, Ghana Health Service, and Ministry of Information - for its relentless efforts to protect the population. As part of the UN Country Team in Ghana, UNICEF and WHO reiterate our commitment to support the vaccination campaign and contain the spread of the virus, in close cooperation with all partners, including Gavi and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI),” the statement added.

Ghana has recorded more than 80,700 cases of coronavirus and 580 deaths since the outbreak. (ILKHA)