The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has, within a week, vaccinated 300,000 people since the Covid-19 mass vaccination programme commenced on March 2, 2021.

According to the Director-General of GHS, Dr. Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, “We aimed at vaccinating 570, 000 people in the first phase of the exercise but exceeded the 70 percent threshold within a week.

“The segmented groups of people who received doses of the AstraZeneca vaccines were, health care workers, persons with underlying health conditions, essential service providers, those who were 60 years and above, as well as members of the security agencies, Executive, Legislature and Judiciary branches of government and the Media.”

Dr. Kuma-Aboagye announced this at Peduase Lodge in the Eastern Region, during a media update on Monday, after a three-day Cabinet Retreat.

He appreciated the efforts by the media for creating awareness on the vaccine, which aided Ghanaians to willingly avail themselves to be vaccinated.

Government of Ghana received its first batch of Oxford AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, under the Global Access (COVAX Facility) on Wednesday, February 24, 2021.

It is also making frantic efforts to secure Cold Chain equipment that is capable of storing vaccines under negative temperatures.

The GHS Boss announced that a locally- developed App would soon be launched to aid in appointment and registration of people onto the electronic database system to speed up the vaccination programme.

The mass vaccination exercise will continue till the end of October, this year about 20 million Ghanaians are expected to be vaccinated although government’s ambition is to vaccinate the entire population.