Nana Akufo-Addo awards Emirates with Presidential Honour for Distinguished Service in the fight against COVID-19

Emirates has been awarded the Presidential Honour for Distinguished Service, at The Ghana National Honours Awards 2023 from President Nana Akufo-Addo for its role in providing medical supplies, humanitarian aid and unstinting support to Ghana during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The airline’s cargo arm airlifted and distributed 62 tonnes of Covid-19 vaccine doses to Ghana during the pandemic. Worldwide, Emirates moved 4,200 tonnes of Covid-19 vaccines, surpassing one billion doses, to over 80 destinations on 2,000 Emirates flights with two-thirds of these doses being transported to developing countries.

Emirates also supported the transport of equipment donated by China’s Jack Ma Foundation to the Government of Ghana and operated 12 repatriation flights from Dubai to Accra, bringing back over 3,000 Ghanaian citizens, residents and others from over 31 cities seeking to return to the country from across its network.

Emirates has been operating to Ghana for the past 19 years, supporting the country’s trade and tourism development, through carrying visitors into the country and opening trade lanes for businesses and exporters alike. Today, Emirates operates a daily non-stop service between Accra and Dubai, connecting travellers and exporters to a network of over 140 passenger and cargo destinations.

Leading the aviation and air cargo industry in a timely response to the crisis, Emirates formulated its COVID-19 distribution strategy in 2020 and mobilized the movement of vaccines through its Dubai hub to developing countries. The air cargo carrier helped transport thousands of tonnes of urgently required PPE and other medical supplies across six continents by rapidly adapting its business model and introducing additional cargo capacity through its modified mini freighters on Boeing 777-300ER passenger aircraft.

Among other categories, the national awards were presented to individuals, institutions and partners who undertook exemplary work and contributed in supporting Ghana during the pandemic.