Ghana’s COVID-19 case count has been stable with no new case recorded. The country over the past five days has not recorded any new case of infection.
According to the update from the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Ghana’s active case count stands at 1,574 with the total number of cases standing at 92,601. The number of discharged persons are at 90,248 with the death toll currently at 779.
GHS has also indicated that, 24 persons are in severe condition with 7 people also in critical condition.
Some Ghanaians have expressed worry about when the second dose of vaccines will arrive in the country. This comes on the back of the time for the administration of the second dose having been missed.
In response to this, the President, H.E Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo announced that;Ghana will take delivery of 350,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine from the COVAX facility on Tuesday, May 4, 2021.
According to the President, government taking delivery of the vaccines forms part of the efforts to vaccinate; the adult population by the end of the year.
“Indeed, we are receiving 350,000 more Astrazenca vaccines from the COVAX facility on Tuesday;in addition to the first consignment of the 600,000 vaccines we received on the 24th of February 2021.”
Nana Akufo-Addo
Sputnik vaccines to arrive in May
President Akufo-Addo also disclosed that the government will, by mid-May, procure some 1.3 million doses of Sputnik V vaccines from Russia.
“By 15th May, Government will also procure some 1.3 million Sputnik V vaccines. We are determined to vaccinate 20 million Ghanaians by the end of this year, and we remain on course to achieve this goal.”
Nana Akufo-Addo
However, the Minority in Parliament has expressed disappointment in the government for its failure to procure additional COVID-19 vaccines;to vaccinate the targeted 20 million Ghanaians.
According to the NDC MPs, Parliament in the 2021 budget estimates approved the allocation of $420 million for the procurement of 42 million jabs of Covid-19 vaccines targeted at vaccinating 20million Ghanaians by the end of the year. But government, they say, has failed to utilize the money approved by the House.
The Minority Spokesperson on Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh questioned why the government has failed to meet the 8 weeks deadline; to administer the second dose for people who took the first jab, adding that, “this has the potential to make some desperate Ghanaians procure from unauthorized sources substandard jabs of Covid-19 vaccines in order to extend the protections they have after taking their first jabs.”
He, therefore, urged the government to expedite action on the procurement of vaccines to protect Ghanaians from the virus since some countries have begun to experience a third wave of Covid-19 infections.
The Juaboso MP also called on government to invest in research on Covid-19 vaccines. He averred that, government should also provide adequate funding for medical research agencies to conduct clinical trials on the various vaccines in the country.
Mr. Akandoh said the nation must conduct its own localized research in order to have country-specific results that will inform our strategy and tactical development.
