Ghana’s mass vaccination programme for COVID-19 got underway in Accra Monday morning with President Akufo-Addo, his wife Rebecca, Vice President Bawumia and his wife Samira taking the first jabs.

It marked the beginning of the deployment of the 600,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines from Tuesday March 2 to Monday, March 15, 2021 by the Ghana Health Service (GHS).

The vaccines made by the Serum Institute of India (Covishield), arrived in Ghana on February 24, 2021.

Key public officials such as the Speaker of Parliament and Members of Parliament, the Chief Justice and Justices of the Superior Court of Judicature, the Chairperson and members of the Council of State, the Chief of Staff and senior officials at the Office of the President and prominent personalities and some eminent clergy, the National Chief Imam, the Asantehene, the Ga Mantse and some media practitioners will also on Tuesday take the jab publicly.

This is being done because the vaccine will help to protect Ghanaians against the impact of COVID-19, President Akufo-Addo explained on Sunday night in a national televised address.

The first batch of the immunisation programme got will be in 43 districts which are the epicenters of the pandemic in Ghana.

They are 25 in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area and two in the Kasoa area [Awutu Senya East and West], 16 in the Kumasi Metropolitan Area and Obuasi area.

President Akufo-Addo in his address Sunday night said whilst Ghana was initially concentrating on the 43 epicenter districts, preparations are being made for the vaccination of a total of 20 million Ghanaians through the deployment of 12,471 vaccinators, 37,413 volunteers and 2079 supervisors for the entire vaccination campaign.