Details
Article
On February 24, Senior Fellow Owusu Akoto was on hand to help receive and distribute the first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines in Accra, Ghana. Freezelink, a Ghanian cold chain logistics company founded by Owusu, was hired to ensure the cold temperatures necessary for first batch of The Oxford/AstraZenica vaccines to reach and be distributed effectively in Ghana.
Ghana became the first country to receive COVID-19 vaccines through COVAX, a global initiative aimed at eliminating a gap between wealthy and developing nations and guaranteeing an equitable access to vaccinations.
Owusu spoke about this monumental day for Ghana, his involvement, and the overall process of vaccine distribution in the Global Dispatches podcast episode with Mark Goldberg, the editor of the UN Dispatch. Owusu mentions that for months, Ghana seemed unaffected by coronavirus and the pandemic felt distant. However, things changed in 2021, when Ghana saw a drastic increase in COVID-19 cases. As Owusu says, the vaccine could not have come at a better time.
To learn more about Owusu’s important work, you can listen to the full episode of the Global Dispatches podcast here (Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify).
You can also read more about the distribution of The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccines in Ghana as reported by BBC, here.