COVID-19 fight in Ghana ‘will be a long war’ – Akufo-Addo

Ghana’s President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is envisaging that the country’s fight against coronavirus will take a little more time before being declared as over.

The fight “will be a long war,” President Akufo-Addo said in a televised address on Sunday, April 26, 2020.

While admitting that the country was dealing with a situation never experienced before, he said Ghana still has a way to go in ridding itself from COVID-19.

“We are still very much in unchartered territory, and clearly, we still have some way to go towards ridding ourselves of the virus. The truth is that, this will be a long war, broken up into several battles,” the President said.

He said Ghana, despite its success in tracing and testing efforts, will not be complacent but will aggressively trace, test, and treat cases of COVID-19.

“Indeed, we registered a modest success in the important battle to trace and test many of the people who had come into contact with infected persons, and we cannot, and will not rest on our laurels. We will not let our guard down, as the fight against this virus has to progress,” Akufo-Addo added.

The President said Ghanaians must play their part by religiously observing the various preventive measures such as social distancing, wearing face masks and regular handwashing to support the work of health workers who are working tirelessly on the frontline to deal with the virus.

“Each one of us must strictly adhere to these directives,” he said.

Ban on public gatherings

The president announced in his address that the ban on public gatherings had been extended by a further two weeks.

The ban has been in force for the past six weeks.

First announced on March 15, 2020, the ban was to expire after a month however President Akufo-Addo through another executive instrument extended it by two weeks.

The ban was due to expire on Monday, 27th April 2020 by the president in his address announced that upon consultation with various institutions and groups, the consensus was reached for the ban to be extended.

“The consensus is supported by data and science and I am also very much of this view…I have by executive instrument extended by two weeks the ban on public gatherings effective tomorrow, Monday, 1:00 am, April 27, 2020,” he said.

Latest COVID-19 statistics

Per the latest [26th April, 2020] Ghana Health Service (GHS) statistics on COVID-19 in Ghana, the confirmed cases in Ghana are now 1,550. The number includes 11 victims who have succumbed and 155 people who have recovered.

The numbers are from the over 100,000 tests that have been done by various testing centers across the country including the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research and the Kumasi Center for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine.

Wearing of face masks

Meanwhile, the government has been actively pushing for the wearing of face masks as part of efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Per new directives from various regions, shops are to insist on ‘no face mask, no entry’ policy.

This is in addition to calls for social distancing in all settings including market places.

With the drive for social distancing having many challenges in enforcement, various local assemblies are adopting innovative ways to ensure compliance.

 

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