Six Delta variants of the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19 virus) have been detected from all samples taken between April and June 2021 at the ports of entry, the Ghana Health Service (GHS) has disclosed.

A statement signed by the Director-General of the GHS, Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, on Tuesday, 22 June 2021, however, said that “no Delta variant has been detected from samples taken from cases in the community”.

According to the statement, the AstraZeneca and Sputnik V vaccines are effective against the deadly Indian strain of the Coronavirus detected, known as the Delta variant in Ghana recently.

In reaction to an online publication discrediting the potency of vaccines against the Delta variant of the virus, detected at the Kotoka International Airport, the statement noted that “reports that Sputnik-V and AstraZeneca vaccines are not effective against the Delta strain of SARS-Cov-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) are untrue”.

The statement revealed that according to data from the Public Health England (PHE), “two doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine are highly effective against hospitalisation due to the Delta variant and showed no deaths among those vaccinated.”

“A study conducted by Gamaleya Center suggests that Sputnik-V is more efficient against the Delta variant of
coronavirus, first detected in India, compared to other COVID-19 vaccines,” the statement said.

“The data also suggest that the AstraZeneca vaccine is effective against symptomatic disease caused by the Delta variant,” GHS added.

The statement further reiterated the measures put in place to curb the spread of the coronavirus at the airport saying: “All passengers who test positive are put under mandatory isolation.

“All positive samples are sent for further testing (genomic sequencing) to identify the variants".

It added that variants sequenced from samples of positive cases at the Airport do not necessarily end up in the community.