In a speech to the country on Sunday, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo declared the COVID-19 pandemic to be over in Ghana.
The President, who has spearheaded Ghana’s attempt to fight the virus, gave updates on the nation’s improved response and highlighted its achievements. President Akufo-Addo began his remarks by thanking the Ghanaian people for their perseverance, tolerance, and cooperation throughout the difficult times.
Today marks the 29th day since Ghana reported its first instances of COVID-19. He acknowledged the crucial role played in Ghana’s fight against COVID-19 by the private sector, multiple stakeholders, religious figures, traditional leaders, scientists, and medical experts.
He asserted that the decline in COVID-19-related fatalities, hospitalizations, and admissions to critical care marked the formal end of a global public health emergency. President Akufo-Addo stated in his overview of the COVID-19 situation in Ghana that as of May 15, 2023, 1,462 fatalities in the country had been connected to the virus. He emphasized that Ghana has not yet reported any critical or severe cases at this time. There have been 171,758 positive cases out of 2,538,198 tests carried out since the first verified case in March 2020.
Additionally, more than 25 million doses of the vaccine had been given, and 10.5 million people had received the full course of vaccination, exceeding the original goal of 20 million.
The COVID-19 Taskforce, led by President Akufo-Addo, made significant decisions based on these encouraging outcomes, including eliminating all remaining COVID-related restrictions at airports and entry points.
Ghana’s health admission criteria are back to how they were before COVID. The President recognized the costs borne by Ghanaians during the pandemic, including the closure of institutions of higher learning, commercial establishments, and houses of worship, as well as the profound effects on daily life. President
Akufo-Addo encouraged people to continue using some preventive measures that had worked well throughout the pandemic while also celebrating the end of the crisis. Regular handwashing, good personal hygiene habits, and routine cleaning, disinfection, and fumigation of public areas like marketplaces are a few of these.
He also emphasized the benefits of the crisis, such as the improvement of disease surveillance systems, the growth of medical facilities, and the foundation of the National Vaccine Institute and vaccine production facilities.
The President informed the public that all expenditures would be subject to audit and parliamentary processes while acknowledging the considerable financial costs associated with the COVID-19 response. He said the COVID Trust Fund’s mandate was complete and thanked frontline personnel.
In his closing remarks, President Akufo-Addo expressed his gratitude to all the people, organizations, and sectors who contributed to Ghana’s effective response to the pandemic.
