Officials of the Ministry of Health, GHS and the US Embassy
The Ministry of Health (MoH) has taken delivery of 1.3 million doses of Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine donated by the United States (US) government.
The consignment, which brings to a total of 2.5 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine donated by the US government, was received by the Deputy Minister of Health, Tina Mensah at the Kotoka International Airport, in Accra.
The vaccine was delivered through the COVAX facility with logistical support from UNICEF.
The donation forms part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s global efforts to fight the Covid-19 pandemic.
US Ambassador to Ghana, Stephanie Sullivan, speaking at a brief handing over ceremony said
vaccines are critical to defeating the pandemic.
“The 2.5 million vaccine doses donated to date by the United States will help protect Ghanaians from serious illness while we work together to stop the spread of Covid-19,” she said.
Ambassador Sullivan assured that the vaccine doses are safe and effective as the same vaccines used in the US.
“The specialized syringes required for the Pfizer vaccine have already arrived in Ghana.
The Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service will oversee vaccine distribution nationwide,” she added.
Madam Tina Mensah, receiving the donation said the US government has provided immense support to the country since the pandemic including the oxygen plant donated by the US government to the Ghana Infectious Disease Center and the negative pressure isolation system at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital also known as Ridge Hospital.
“This support came at a critical time when the national Covid-19 program is ongoing ” she added.
The deputy minister said the Covid-19 vaccination exercise is progressing steadily countrywide due to the support of friends like the US government.
Since March 2020, the US government, including elements of the Department of State,Department of Defense, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Agency for International Development（USAID) has provided more than $30 million to support Ghana’s COVID-19 response.
These funds have provided personal protective equipment and training for medical professionals, medical
equipment and testing supplies, vaccine distribution planning and support, economic assistance for
impacted communities, three new regional Public Health Emergency Operations Centers in Ghana, as well as educational support for Ghanaian students during the pandemic.
U.S. Ambassador to Ghana, Stephanie Sullivan was joined by Ghana’s Deputy Minister of Health,Honorable Tina Mensah,Chief Director of the Ministry of Health,Mr.Kwabena Boadu Oklu-Afari,Director of Public Health,Ghana Health
Service,Dr.Asiedu Bekoe,Program Director, Expanded Program of Immunization,Ghana Health
Service,Dr.Amponsah Achianu,Chief of Protocol,Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration,
Ambassador Emmanuel Antwi,and the UNICEF Country Representative to Ghan Ms.Anne-Claire
Dufay.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri