President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has announced the reopening of Ghana’s main airport, the Kotoka International Airport, from Tuesday, September 1, 2020.
The decision, President Akufo-Addo indicated, had been communicated to all international airlines, explaining that “after weeks of thorough work, I am satisfied that it is safe to do so.”
However, the country’s borders, by land and sea, will remain closed to human traffic until further notice, the President stated.
Also, the Ghana Education Service, after further consultations, had decided to postpone the remainder of the academic year for all nursery, kindergarten, primary, JHS 1 and SHS 1 students.
The next academic year, President Akufo-Addo explained, would resume in January 2021, with appropriate adjustments made to the curriculum, to ensure that nothing is lost from the previous year.
Giving an update on Ghana’s Enhanced Response to the Coronavirus Pandemic, on Sunday, August 30, 2020, President Akufo-Addo said measures have been taken and duly communicated to airlines, to ensure that, the reopening does not lead to the importation or resurgence of the virus into our country.
Among the measures taken are that; any passenger who arrives in Ghana must be in possession of a negative COVID-19 PCR test result from an accredited laboratory in the country of origin, and must have been done not more than 72 hours before the scheduled departure.
Also, disembarking passengers must do so wearing face masks and upon disembarking from the airplane, each passenger will undergo a mandatory COVID-19 test at the airport terminal, at a fee to be borne by the passenger. The test result will be available within 30 minutes.
More also, children under the ages of 5 will not be required to undergo testing at the airport; passengers, who test positive for COVID-19, will be handled by the health authorities for further clinical assessment and management; and
Lastly, passengers, who test negative, can, thereupon, enter Ghana to go about their lawful activities and will be advised to continue to observe COVID-19 safety precautions during their stay in Ghana.
President Akufo-Addo said the respective Ministries and agencies responsible, would spell out in further detail the protocols surrounding the re-opening of the country international airport, and the procedures to be adhered to by passengers arriving in Ghana.
On the postponement of the remainder of the academic year for all Kindergarten to JHS I and SHS 1 students, President said he “appreciates fully the inconvenience and the financial burden the continued stay at home of children are posing to parents and guardians.”
“Fellow Ghanaians, these are a necessary price to pay in our efforts to protect the lives of our children, as well as to limit and contain the spread of the virus in our country.”
With the effectiveness of the government policies, the co-operation of the Ghanaians, the number of active cases of COVID-19 persons continues to decline. As of Friday, August 28, the number of active cases has reduced to 1,059 persons. A total of 42,963 persons have recovered, and 276 persons, a great majority of them with underlying illnesses—hypertension, diabetes and chronic liver disease—have sadly died.
In as much as these statistics are encouraging, in contrast to what is pertaining in several countries across the world, President Akufo-Addo said “we cannot afford to let our guard down. We have to maintain, in a state of constant readiness, the enhanced infrastructure and expertise we have built during the period of the virus to cope with it.”
Rex Mainoo Yeboah, ISD
