President Nana Akufo-Addo has voiced worry over the country’s scarcity of childhood vaccines.
In his State of the Nation Address on Wednesday, the President expressed concern saying if prolonged, it may have a severe impact on Ghana’s Childhood Immunization Programme.
He stated that efforts are being made to ensure that all children receive immunisations as soon as possible.
“Mr. Speaker, I must say, however, that the current shortage of some childhood vaccines in the country has concerned me greatly. This shortage, if prolonged, will affect negatively Ghana’s Childhood Immunisation Programme, which has been recognised as one of the most successful in the world. The WHO has only recently expressed worry about a steady decline in measles vaccination coverage globally, because of the concentration on the fight against COVID-19.
“In accordance with our desire not to become part of this global trend, Government has taken steps to ensure that stocks of these vaccines are procured and supplied, as a matter of emergency. The Ghana Health Service has developed an elaborate programme to catch up on children who have missed their vaccinations immediately after stocks arrive.
“I want to encourage all parents and caregivers to ensure that eligible children are vaccinated, once this programme begins. No child should be denied access to vaccination. Mercifully, so far, not a single child has died as a result of the outbreak.”
Several parts of the nation have experienced vaccine shortages in recent months, despite assurances by the National Health Insurance Authority that approximately GH70 million had been set aside for vaccine procurement
The country’s vaccine scarcity, according to the Minority in Parliament, is a clear sign of the government’s incompetence.
Despite an allocation of around GH72 million for vaccine procurement, the organization claims that the country has been plagued by a Measles outbreak since October 2022 owing to vaccine shortages.
