Second jab of coronavirus starts today

At least half of the backlog of people awaiting their second shot of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is expected to take the jab, starting Tuesday, August 31, 2021.

The nationwide exercise, expected to be concluded on Saturday, is targeting people above 18 who received their first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine from March 10 to 29 this year.

The Manager of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI), Dr. Kwame Amponsa-Achiano, told daily Graphic the backlog was a little over 400,000.

He said they were targeting people who took the jab between March 10 and 29 this year because the last consignment of AstraZeneca that was deployed was targeted at those who took their first jab from March 1 to March 9 this year.

He asked the target group to take along a valid national ID card and the COVID-19 vaccination card they received for the first jab.

Meanwhile, the government is scheduled to take delivery of one million, five hundred thousand (1,500,000) doses of Astra Zeneca vaccines donated to the country by the German government, according to the Director of Communication at the Presidency, Eugene Arhin.

Addressing the Presidential Press Corps at this week’s edition of the Jubilee House press briefing, Mr.Eugene Arhin says following President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s meeting with the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, during his just-ended visit to Germany, the German government has donated 1,500,000.00 doses of AstraZeneca to the country.

“The German Chancellor I am happy to inform the Ghanaian people made it known to the President that a total of 1,200,000 vaccines were to be given to Ghana, basically, the Astra Zeneca Vaccines. A few hours ago, I got confirmation from the President that this has increased from 1,200,000 to 1,500,000 and steps have already been taken, in fact, according to the President, he is dispatching a plane immediately to go to Germany to take delivery on the 1,500,000 doses of the Astra Zeneca vaccines,” Eugene Arhin said.