Support immunisation budget to sustain children’s health
The Executive Director of Future Generations International (FUGI), Dr Joan Awunyo-Akaba, has appealed to the government to identify sustainable ways of supporting its immunisation budget.
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This is because the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisations (GAVI) would withdraw its support for Ghana in four years time and the country would need a minimum of $30 million annually to pay for the full cost of vaccines, she said.
According to Dr Awunyo-Akaba, it is important for the country to start preparing to “wean” itself from GAVI’s support because vaccines, although expensive, are important for the health and well-being of children.
She said immunisation of Ghanaian children with the most modern and effective new vaccines have been made possible from donor support and due to Ghana’s economic challenges, it would be difficult for the government to bear the full cost of vaccinating children.
“Immunisation is one of the most cost-effective interventions in public health and has saved many lives by reducing childhood deaths,” she said.
Dr Awunyo-Akaba, who once served on the GAVI Board, said FUGI, a local non-governmental organisation, was therefore, proposing the establishment of an Immunisation Sustainability Fund (ISFund) to pay for childhood immunisation in Ghana.
The fund, she explained, would be a public-private partnership (PPP) and would involve mobilising funds from the public for investment to help support the government’s financing of immunisation programmes.
She, therefore, appealed to the President to lead by supporting FUGI and the private sector to set up the Immunisation Sustainability Fund (ISFUND) “to augment the budget of the Ministry of Health to provide sustained quality life-saving vaccines for Ghana's future generations”.
