The Minority in Parliament has stated that it will investigate President Akufo- Addo’s allocation of $25 million for the establishment of a National Vaccine Institute.
In his 26th COVID-19 update, the President stated that the government had committed $25 million to the establishment of a National Vaccine Institute to spearhead vaccine manufacturing to meet national and regional needs.
Speaking to journalists following the passage of the National Vaccine Institute Bill 2022, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, the Ranking Member of Parliament’s Health Committee, stated that the Minority will investigate the committed funds for the project.
“To a large extent, we have passed the law even before the President allocated about $25 million to the committee that the President constituted. Now that the law has been passed, we will also look into how that money has been expended, that is also very important,” Mr. Akandoh said.
The institute’s establishment is one of the recommendations of a government-appointed committee charged with developing a concrete plan for vaccine development and manufacturing in Ghana.
The concept arose as a result of Ghana’s difficulties in obtaining COVID-19 vaccines.
According to the President, the institute will be tasked with delivering six distinct mandates:
- Establishing local vaccine manufacturing plants;
- Deepening Research & Development (R&D) for vaccines in Ghana;
- Upgrading and strengthening the FDA;
- Forging bilateral and multilateral partnerships for vaccine manufacturing in various areas, such as funding, clinical trials, technology transfer, licensing, and assignment of intellectual property rights;
- Building the human resource base for vaccine discovery, development, and manufacture; and
- Establishing a permanent national secretariat to coordinate vaccine development and manufacture.
