Why your Ghana COVID-19 vaccination card records cannot be found openly

There have been questions as to why vaccination records of Ghanaians who have already taken the two jabs of the COVID-19 vaccine cannot be found openly on the internet via a portal.

Using the QR code on the card, one is directed to the page - covid19vaccination.gov.gh.

On that page, which has a Ministry of Health logo, with the information “COVID-19 IMMUNIZATION TRACKER, Enter card number below to verify.” After the card number is entered, one is directed to another page with result indicating “NO VACCINATION RECORD FOUND.”

Some Ghanaians have expressed concern about the development and have questioned if they will be able to use the card outside the borders of Ghana since it cannot be openly authenticated on the portal using the QR code and card number.

The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has not officially commented on the development.

But appearing on Peace FM’s Kookrokoo radio morning programme Friday morning [June 25, 2021], monitored by Graphic Online, a former Deputy Minister of Health and former Member of Parliament for Ledzorkuku, Dr Bernard Okoe Boye said the portal has not been activated by Ghana because of cost implications.

He explained the card was yet to become a requirement for international travel hence there was no need to activate it now to incur cost in running the portal.

“There is a cost to everything, we have what it takes to get it running so that they can check it in US for example to see the vaccination record,” he said.

But, he said Ghana was monitoring and working together internationally, “if a message comes to the [COVID-19] taskforce that now it is a requirement [for international travel], why not, it is something that Ghana Health Service (GHS) is going to do [activate it].”

Dr Okoe Boye said for now people want to scan just to see that their records are in there and that is why some may have expressed concern when they are not getting any results from there.

“But for now, the message is that, there is a running cost to that service, to get it on. But we don’t want to start spending on it when it has not become more or less a requirement,” he added.