Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has received his first dose of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine this morning.
He received the jab at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra on Monday, March 1, 2021, together with his wife, Mrs Rebecca Akufo-Addo.
According to the President, he was getting the jab to show Ghanaians it is “safe to take”. “I decided to take it [the vaccine] publicly to clear all doubts and urge everyone to also accept the vaccine.”
He added that, contrary to widely held claims that the vaccines were intended to kill Africans and cause diseases, the vaccines have been approved by the Food and Drugs Authority in Ghana and are deemed safe.
He used the opportunity to thank the COVAX Facility for giving Ghana 600,000 doses of the vaccine.
The 600,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine that arrived by plane from India are the first vaccines distributed to low- and middle-income countries by COVAX, the global initiative for equal vaccine distribution.
“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 World Health Organization and UNICEF said in a joint statement.
The Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and his wife, Samira Bawumia also took their jab at the police hospital in Labone.
Taking the vaccine will not cause infertility in men or vaccine, vice President assures Ghanaians.