The Ghana Health Service (GHS) says it has achieved only ten percent (10%) of turnout for the Covid-19 vaccination following the announcement of the 6th National COVID-19 Vaccination Days (NVD).
The Ghana Health Service declared Friday, January 20, 2023, to Tuesday, January 24, 2023, as vaccination days, as countries including China have seen a spike in COVID-19 cases.
The Programme Manager for the Expanded Programme on Immunization at the Service, Dr Kwame Amponsa-Achiano, said he is however hopeful that turnout would improve.
“So far, it’s been fine, not exactly as we expected, but at least it made some inroads. We are happy that some people are taking some vaccines. It’s early days yet, we have data for only day one… If you look at data for day one, we are doing about 10% of our target.”
Dr Amponsa-Achiano also stated that the reports being referred to were from only thirteen regions.
“That is data from only thirteen regions, we haven’t had the reports from the other three regions yet, so we are still expecting,” Dr Kwame Amponsa-Achiano stated.
The campaign is targeted at administering 1.4 million doses of vaccines to unvaccinated persons in all parts of the country.
Pregnant women and all persons aged 15 years and above are eligible to receive the jab.
Dr. Patrick Kuma Aboagye, Director General of the Ghana Health Service, who launched the campaign in Accra on Thursday said the move was to bring the country closer to the attainment of herd immunity.
During the campaign period, approximately 6000 vaccination teams will be deployed across the country, employing both static and close-to-client strategies to reach the unreached.
Vaccinations will be done in all government hospitals across the country, schools, marketplaces, churches, mosques, and homes.
The Director General said currently, about 22 million vaccine doses had been administered, out of the number, over 12 million people in Ghana had received at least a dose of the vaccine and nine million were fully immunized.
He called on eligible persons who were yet to vaccinate to get vaccinated now.
“Vaccination remains the most effective way of protection against the COVID-19 disease, the vaccines are safe, effective and free, prevent severe illnesses, hospitalization, and death,” he said.
