Government projected that 20 million Ghanaians should be vaccinated by December 2021
New variant of COVID-19, omicron detected in Ghana
GHS to implement compulsory vaccination
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo says Ghana has successfully vaccinated 5,556,210 persons so far since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.
The government had initially projected to vaccinate 20 million Ghanaians by the end of December to help achieve herd immunity.
Speaking at the 37th National Farmers Day celebration at Cape Coast in the Central Region, Akufo-Addo said Ghanaians must strictly adhere to the COVID-19 amidst the detection of the Omicron variant in Ghana.
“Despite having a relatively actively low case count as 727 persons infected with COVID-19 as at 28 November we have vaccinated a total of 5,556,210, it is important that we bear in mind that the pandemic is far from over.
“Last Sunday the GHS announced several important additional measures aimed at ensuring that we continue to win the fight against the virus, I appeal to all of you to adhere to them,” he said.
At least 34 cases of the Omicron variant of COVD-19 have been detected at the Kotoka International Airport, the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research has said.
It comes barely a day after the Director General of the Ghana Health Service announced that just two cases of the variant had been confirmed at the airport.
The Omicron variant which was first detected in South Africa has been described as variant of concern as several countries have already imposed travel restrictions on South Africa due to the high rate of transmissibility.
The institute in a Twitter post said it is monitoring the potential spread of the virus within the Ghanaian population.
“The Omicron variant was detected in 28 percent (34 out of 120) returning travellers samples, (collected from 21-25 November) sequenced. These are the first imported cases of the variant into Ghana, and we are closely monitoring its potential spread in the local population. We encourage the general public to continue adhering to the COVID-19 prevention protocols.”