Ghana, South Africa to start 2nd phase of vaccinations

South Africa began its second phase of coronavirus vaccinations on Monday after 87 sites opened their doors to vaccinate the elderly. This was after the country received 975,780 Pfizer vaccines as of Monday.

Zweli Mkhize, South Africa's health minister, said the ministry is working with the South African Security Agency in an effort to reach as many people as possible who are aged 60 and above. He also added that they would use places of worship to reach them and conduct home visits in some cases.

"We expect a slow start because we are starting off with a new vaccine we have never used before. We have learned that the first few days start slowly as vaccinators get used to the new vaccine then once operators are comfortable, the turnover ramps up significantly. This is what we have planned around to allow us a few days to iron out any teething problems," Mkhize was reported as saying by local media.

He added that despite the fact that the country was not experiencing a third wave of infections yet, the rise in positive cases is worrying.

"We need to make sure we reduce infections. Vaccines will help but it is still important for people to follow nonpharmaceutical interventions. We know we would have loved to have the vaccines earlier but it was not possible. Now the vaccines are here and we have to push to reach our targets," Mkhize said.

In Ghana, preparations have begun for the second phase of the national COVID-19 vaccination program which is slated to kick off on Wednesday. This follows the arrival of 350,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines in the country on March 7.

In his 25th nationwide COVID-19 update on Sunday, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Ghana's president,encouraged every eligible person to go for the second shot, saying it was their best shot at attaining herd immunity and returning to normalcy.

"I am happy to announce that beginning May 19, the deployment of the second dose of vaccines will take place across the designated vaccination centers in the 43 districts, approximately 12 weeks after the first jab. More details of the deployment will be communicated by the Ghana Health Service in coming days," Akufo-Addo said.

"Let us take the vaccine when it's our turn. Until we vaccinate the requisite numbers of Ghanaians and achieve herd immunity, which will help return our lives to normalcy, the Imposition of Restrictions Act introduced last year will remain in force and the security agents will not relent in their efforts to enforce it," he added.

In a joint statement released by the World Health Organization and UNICEF last week, the two organizations welcomed the arrival of the additional 350,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX Facility. They also noted that Ghana was selected as one of the recipients of the doses due to its rapid, efficient and coordinated response to this public health crisis, as well as its absorption capacity.

"UNICEF and WHO in Ghana welcome the arrival of these vaccines during these challenging times, when there is limited availability of the COVID-19 doses globally. Thanks to the collaboration between governments, the support from the COVAX facility and all partners, we are all seeking to ensure that the population is protected," the statement said.

Ghana is also expecting about 300,000 Sputnik V vaccines already approved by the Ghana Food and Drugs Authority to boost the country's preventive efforts.