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As countries roll out COVID-19 vaccination, what are the links with universal health coverage and a shared vision to leave no one behind?

In February 2021 Ghana was the first country to receive COVID-19 vaccine doses through COVAX. Many other countries are now receiving vaccines. COVAX’s aim to guarantee fair and equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines around the world implicitly echoes universal health coverage (UHC) commitments to ensure that everyone, everywhere can access the health services they need. This webinar will share Ghana’s experience of COVID-19 vaccination planning and rollout, explore the links between vaccine equity and the UHC vision to leave no one behind, and highlight the role of strong primary health care systems in achieving both vaccination and wider UHC goals.

The webinar is organised by P4H, the global network for health financing and social health protection, and UHC2030, the global movement to strengthen health systems for universal health coverage.

Click here to register
SPEAKERS
Dr Emmanuel Ankrah Odame
Director, Policy Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation, Ministry of Health, Ghana
Dr Odame leads the unit responsible for health sector planning, budgeting and policy direction, was technical lead for development of Ghana’s Universal Health Coverage Roadmap (2020-2030), and is part of Ghana’s COVID-19 Steering Group. Previously he was Ghana’s health negotiator and focal point for the SDGs. He has published on a range of health policy topics, presented at international forums and governing bodies and sits on UHC2030’s Steering Committee. He holds a degree in Medicine and Masters in Health Policy from the University of Ghana, and a negotiation and leadership qualification from Harvard Law School.
Dr Franklin Asiedu-Bekoe
Director of Public Health, Ghana Health Service
Dr Asiedu-Bekoe currently leads Ghana’s COVID-19 surveillance and convenes the National Public Health Emergency Operations Centre. He has 20 years experience in applied epidemiology and disease control and has been the lead investigator for outbreaks including Cholera, Pandemic Influenza, H1N1, Yellow Fever, Lassa Fever and Meningitis. He has worked at the international, national, regional and district levels, including in Joint External Evaluation missions to assess International Health Regulations capacities. He is a Fellow of the Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons at the Faculty of Public Health.

CHAIR
Francesca Colombo
Head of the Health Division, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Francesca has over 20 years of leadership experience in international health and health systems. She is an international expert on health and care issues for elderly populations and has led a range of projects on healthcare policies and financing. She has advised governments on health systems policies and reforms extensively in Europe, South America and Asia. She oversees the OECD’s work on health, aiming to provide internationally comparable data, apply economic analysis to health policies, and advise policy-makers, stakeholders and citizens on taking action for more and better health.

PANELISTS
Ainur Aiypkhanova
Health policy analyst, Kazakhstan
Ainur Aiypkhanova is a healthcare leader and policy-maker, currently on maternity leave from her position as Director of Strategy & Development, Ministry of Healthcare Kazakhstan. Between 2017 and 2019 Ainur was Director-General of a policy-making institute of the Ministry of Healthcare, chaired WHO’s consultation process for the Astana Declaration (2018), and received a State Award Medal from the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan for her contribution to the Global Conference on Primary Health Care. Ainur previously specialized in quality improvement, led reforms of Kazakhstan’s national accreditation system and supported leading hospitals and health care organizations to secure international accreditation.
Dr Githinji Gitahi
Global CEO, AMREF Health Africa
Prior to his appointment at Amref Health Africa, Dr Gitahi was Vice President and Regional Director for Africa, Smile Train International, where he successfully established partnerships with various African governments. He previously worked with the Nation Media Group as Managing Director for Monitor Publications in Uganda and General Manager for Marketing and Circulation in East Africa. He is a member of the Private Sector Advisory Board of Africa CDC and of WHO’s Community Health Worker Hub, holds Board positions at The Standard Group and across Amref Health Africa offices, and was previously Co-Chair of UHC2030.
Dr Ann Lindstrand
Unit Head, Expanded Program on Immunization, WHO
Ann Lindstrand, Unit Head of the EPI Program at WHO since September 2018, is a paediatrician and specialist in public health and social medicine. Before joining WHO she was Sweden’s National Program Manager for Immunization. She has worked in Mozambique, Angola and Guinea Conacry with Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) and been President and a board member of MSF in Sweden. Ann has an MPH from Harvard University and PhD from Karolinska Institutet, has lectured in global paediatrics at Karolinska Institutet for over 25 years, authored a global public health textbook, and organized courses for young health professionals in Tanzania, Cuba and India.
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