President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has announced that beaches, pubs, cinemas and nightclubs in Ghana still remain closed.
According to the President, the action had become necessary as a measure to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Beaches, pubs, nightclubs remain closed. All institutions cleared to function must do so with strict adherence to the Covid-19 safety protocols,” he said.
These places have been closed since the country was placed under lockdown in March this year.
Addressing the nation on Sunday, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo again announced that Ghana’s borders by land and sea also remain closed to human traffic until further notice.
He warned that Ghanaians were letting their guard down and urged citizens to adhere to mask-wearing, hand-washing, the use of sanitisers, and social distancing protocols.
He mentioned that there had been an improvement with Ghana’s situation despite the election season that saw campaign events breach protocols.
“Despite the genuine fears of many that we will see a surge in cases, we have on the contrary witnessed a stable daily rate of infection from between 130 and 100 cases.”
He, however, advised that families who would be gathering for family events and other event organisers should put all safety measures in place and make sure that the safety measures are adhered to by patrons of the events.
“My fellow Ghanaians, I make this plea to all of you to ensure compliance and mask-wearing protocols in our daily routines. This will help us in our fight against the virus,” he said.
He has also given the assurance that the newly approved emergency vaccines for Covid-19 will be deployed across the country, adding that the government is taking steps to access the vaccines.
Ghana’s active cases have reduced from 1,139 to 946 as at Friday, December 18, according to President Akufo-Addo.
He disclosed that hospitalisation rates continued to be very low and “our treatment centres are virtually empty.”
President Akufo-Addo further thanked Ghanaians for contributing to the improvement and adhering to the safety protocols.
By George Clifford Owusu