Analysis: Ghana’s yellow fever numbers reveal a gap between vaccination and protection

A yellow fever vaccination card — the International Certificate of Vaccination or Prophylaxis (ICVP) — is a formal record of vaccination.

What national vaccination coverage actually tells us WHO/UNICEF estimates put Ghana's routine yellow fever vaccination coverage at 94% in 2021, 95% in 2022 and 88% in 2023.

But the investigation should also test a wider assumption: that high reported vaccination coverage necessarily means high, verifiable protection in every community If Ghana cannot reliably connect certificates to vaccination records, it risks overstating coverage and overlooking people who remain vulnerable.