President Nana Akufo-Addo has shut the entry points of Ghana to human traffic effective today Sunday for the next two weeks. The latest directive is an improved public safety and protection mechanism government has announced last night. According to the President, this decision has become necessary to stem the spread of the virus and protect the lives of Ghanaians.
However, he indicated that, this closure will not apply to goods, supplies and cargo. The President in his third address of the nation in 10 days emphasized that, “all our borders, that is by land, sea and air will be closed to human traffic for the next two weeks, beginning midnight on Sunday”.
President Akufo-Addo said anybody who comes into the country before stipulated time will observe a mandatory quarantine and tested for the virus. He added the Ministry of Health will not only step up its contact tracing efforts, but will also see to it that, all persons who have been identified as having come into contact with infected persons are tested for the virus.
The government has scaled up plans to procure more personal protection equipment to beef up supplies for the frontline health workers and according to the Commander in Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces, 50,000 additional test kits have been ordered, and are expected in the country very shortly.
The President hinted that, the Ghana Health Service is mobilizing new and retired healthcare professionals to augment our preparedness in dealing with a possible surge in infections, stressing thereby, “It is heartening to hear of the numbers of retired healthcare professionals who have stepped forward to offer their services.”
He added, “Just as it is to note the Ghanaian entrepreneurs who have responded to this crisis by producing greater quantities of sanitizers and ‘Veronica buckets’. Let me reiterate my appeal to members of the pharmaceutical industry to scale up their domestic production of pharmaceutical products. Government will do its best to support them” he assured.
Meanwhile, President Akufo-Addo has commended Ghanaians for observing the prescribed social distancing and enhanced hygiene protocols announced earlier, adding he is encouraged by the numbers.
Ghana yesterday recorded the first death of the virus involving a Lebanese national, resident in Ghana in the Ashanti region and according to the Ghana Health Service COVID-19 Webpage, the confirmed cases of the virus has now risen to 21 as at 03:15 GMT.
