The presidential vaccine manufacturing committee in Ghana has said it is targeting production of COVID-19 vaccines in Ghana within the next two years.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo established the committee to spearhead local production of vaccines to tackle the spread of COVID-19.
Addressing a meeting with the press on Friday 27 August 2021, part of stakeholder consultations towards the production of COVID-19 vaccines in Ghana, Anarfi Asamoah Baah, the co-ordinator of Ghana’s Coronavirus Response Programme who is also a member of the committee, said the target is achievable.
Dr Baah explained further that there are two main challenges that the state is aiming to meet in relation to vaccine production in Ghana. The first is the ability to produce COVID-19 vaccines already in use in the world. Second is the investment into research and development needed to be able to develop vaccines to counter future pandemics and diseases.
“There are already known vaccines like AstraZeneca, like Pfizer. The testing has been done, the research has been done, the vaccine is in use and we want to be able to copy it in Ghana. In order to do that, you need the government intervention to facilitate discussion between the original owners so that the private sector can be allowed to copy.
“The second problem we are trying to address is more for the future … how do we develop the capacity to do our own research, discover our own vaccines for future diseases?
“Those are two different situations, and that is what the research institutions need to be supported [to do] on a sustained basis for a number of years,” Dr Baah said.
Build capacity
Corroborating the assertions made by Dr Baah, Anthony Nsiah-Asare, the presidential advisor on health who is also a member of the committee, announced that, over the next two years, the target is to build capacity to ensure production of already existing vaccines on the market.
He explained further that three private pharmaceutical organisations have initiated processes towards procuring COVID-19 vaccine production equipment. The firms are Ernest Chemist Ltd, Dan Adams and Kinapharma (DEK).
Dr Nsiah-Asare said the government is ready to offer them all the support they need.
National Vaccine Institute
William Ampofo, the head of the virology department of the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research and secretary to the committee, said that given the complex nature of vaccine production, a national vaccine institute would be Ghana’s best bet to support the plan to achieve local production of COVID-19 vaccines within the next two years.
“The permanent secretariat will enable the co-ordinating with various existing ministries, departments and agencies in harmonising what we already have to enable us to have a better system to establish vaccine manufacturing,” Professor Ampofo said.
Committee
In his 24th address to the nation on COVID-19, delivered on Sunday 28 February 2021, President Akufo-Addo announced the formation of the Vaccine Production Committee.
The president outlined his vision of ensuring that Ghana produces COVID-19 vaccines locally.
“I want to reiterate my determination that we should manufacture vaccines here in Ghana.
“To this end, a committee has been established under the chairmanship of the former minister of the environment, science, technology and innovation, the world-renowned scientist Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, which is formulating a concrete plan of action towards vaccine development and manufacturing,” the president said.
Wilberforce Asare
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