Minister of Health to introduce new vaccines

The Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, says the country is strengthening its life-course approach to immunisation by introducing new vaccines such as the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine for adolescent girls and the hepatitis B birth dose for newborns.

“These innovations are aimed at reducing disease burden and promoting lifelong health from infancy through adulthood,” he said.

Mr Akandoh said this in a speech read on his behalf by the Chief Director, Dr Hafez Adam Taher, at the launch of the 2025 African Vaccination Week (AVW) and Child Health Promotion Week (CHPW).

The twin launch, last Wednesday at Mantse Agboena at Jamestown, Accra, was themed “Every Child Deserves a Healthy Future: Invest in Your Child. Attend ‘Weighing’ Regularly.”

He called for collective responsibility in promoting child health and combating vaccine hesitancy and encouraged parents to regularly attend child welfare clinics, where essential services such as vaccinations, vitamin A supplementation and nutrition counselling are provided.

Event

The community-based event brought together health professionals, government officials, development partners, traditional leaders, representatives from the Ghana Health Service (GHS), the Ministry of Health and other stakeholders.

It included activities such as child weighing, nutrition assessment, and birth registration.

As part of its support, UNICEF donated megaphones to aid in public announcements and mobilisation for vaccination activities across communities.

Ensuring healthy futures

The Director-General of the GHS, Prof. Samuel Kaba Akoriyea, reiterated the government’s commitment to ensuring that every child receives timely and equitable access to life-saving vaccines and child health services.

“By investing in our children’s future, we are nurturing Ghana’s future leaders, professionals and nation-builders”, he said.

He emphasised the importance of regular visits to child welfare clinics, where interventions such as immunisation, insecticide-treated nets, growth monitoring and health education are provided free of charge.

The acting Regional Director of Health for Greater Accra, Dr Robert Amesiya, said the celebration provided an opportunity to intensify public awareness of key interventions that improve child survival and development.

He emphasised that all health facilities across the region were directed to step up activities during the week, including immunisation, nutrition assessments and advocacy on vaccine safety and uptake.

“Vaccination is one of the best health investments any society can make,” Dr Amesiya said. “We must continue to fight vaccine misinformation and hesitancy with accurate education and strong community engagement.”

Commendation

The Chief of Health at UNICEF Ghana, Dr Manuel Dewez, commended the GHS for its leadership in child health and vaccination delivery.

He praised Ghana for achieving over 95 per cent routine immunisation coverage (DPT3), describing the country as a regional model of equity and innovation.

However, he expressed concern about delays in the implementation of the Vaccine Financing Transition Roadmap, urging swift government action to develop sustainable domestic financing mechanisms.

Dr Dewez also addressed the theme’s emphasis on child weighing, stressing the importance of regular growth monitoring to detect malnutrition early.

Citing a recent UNICEF analysis of the 2022 DHS data, he revealed that two-thirds of Ghanaian children live in food poverty.

“Food poverty doesn’t just mean lack of food—it also means lack of dietary diversity. Some children, even from wealthier households, eat the same foods daily.

We must ensure all children have access to a diverse and nutritious diet, including eggs, which are an excellent source of protein,” he said.