The programmes manager of Ghana’s expanded program on Immunization, Dr. Kwame Amponsa-Achiano has expressed optimism that twenty million Ghanaians can still be vaccinated to achieve the herd immunity desired.
His confidence stems from the fact that the country is still expecting more vaccines from different sources to augment the vaccination process in the country.
In an interview with Sefah-Danquah on the Happy Morning Show, he shared: “As at now, the ministry has requested 17.3 million doses from the AU, meaning that we can vaccinate up to 17 million people because it is one dose. Apart from that, we are getting 1.2 million Moderna vaccines. We are also getting 1.3 million Pfizer vaccines. This is to be expected by the end of September. We will have some AstraZeneca vaccines mainly for 2nd dose so if you add all these, it shows that if we get this as planned, we are hopeful we can vaccinate 20 million people and get herd immunity.”
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He added that it is likely that next week, the country will take delivery of more Johnson and Johnson vaccines.
Meanwhile, Immunologist at the Noguchi Medical Research Institute (NMIMR), Dr. Kwadwo Asamoah Kusi has expressed that the possibility of achieving a herd immunity is very low as there has been a stretch of the vaccination period which is supposed to usually last from one to three months.
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Ghana has taken delivery of 177,600 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccines to vaccinate people who are yet to receive a COVID-19 jab.
The vaccine is the first batch of the Africa Union’s African Vaccine Acquisition Trust (AVAT) initiative delivered to Ghana.
The vaccine shots are being given out in 11 districts; seven in the Greater Accra Region and four in the Greater Kumasi Metro, targeting persons at higher risk.