Kwaku Agyeman
Coronavirus (COVID-19), the dreaded viral infection, is taking a firm grip on West Africa, with Ghana confirming its first two cases.
The Minister for Health, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, made the announcement on Thursday after test results from the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) proved positive for the virus.
The case involved two male travellers who arrived in the country about a week ago and were residing in Accra.
“Both individuals returned from Norway and Turkey so these are imported cases,” Mr. Agyeman-Manu said.
The Health Minister said both patients were being kept in isolation and were stable.
“We wish to assure Ghanaians that the government, together with all health partners, will continue to work assiduously to ensure the situation is contained,” he said.
Victims
Meanwhile, it has been revealed that one of the male victims is a Ghanaian who travelled to Ghana from Turkey. He is believed to be a staff of the United Nations (UN) agencies in Ghana.
The agencies were reported to have shut down their offices and asked workers to stay home after it had emerged that one of the COVID-19 victims was their employee.
This was contained in a correspondence from UN authorities in Ghana to their staff on Friday following the announcement by the Health Ministry.
According to the memo sighted by DAILY GUIDE, “The patient returned to Ghana from Turkey on February 29, 2020 and fell ill on Tuesday.”
The other victim is also a top official of the Norwegian Embassy in Ghana.
The embassy of Norway confirmed on Friday afternoon in a Facebook post that one of their colleagues had tested positive for the COVID-19 virus.
A correspondence from the embassy sighted by DAILY GUIDE indicated that the embassy was in close dialogue with the Ghana Health Service (GHS).
It stated that all staff of the embassy were in quarantine and fully committed to assisting with containment. The embassy is closed to the public until further notice as staff members operate from home.
“We are thankful for the care and assistance offered by Ghana’s health authorities and WHO Ghana and also for the compassion showed,” the statement said.
Reactions
There have been various reactions to the confirmation of COVID-19 in Ghana, with both government and the public taking measures to contain the virus and prevent its further spread.
The Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, as part of measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, has announced the limitation of visits to patients on admission to only two relatives.
With regard to the Department of Child Health, only parents or guardians of the patients are permitted to visit.
A statement signed by the Head of Public Affairs, Mustapha Salifu, said the hospital measure had become necessary because patients were already vulnerable and could, therefore, be easily infected.
“We urge the patients and their relatives to support the hospital in implementing this directive for the safety of all, especially our patients and caregivers,” the statement said.
A planned event by Ghana’s First Lady, Rebecca Akufo-Addo, has also been cancelled due to the reported cases of COVID-19 in the country.
The event, which was scheduled for later this evening, was to award some Ghanaian women as part of the National Women’s Month celebration.
A spokesperson for the First Lady, Sheila Sekyi, said the office does not want to take chances after two cases were reported on Thursday.
The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) also announced the cancellation of its annual Open Day event due to current operational exigencies.
A release signed by Colonel E. Aggrey-Quashie apologized for any inconvenience caused.
The public has also resorted to the use of alcohol-based hand sanitizers in a bid to stay safe.
DAILY GUIDE’s checks revealed that major shopping outlets and pharmacies had their products running out almost 12 hours after the first cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in the country.
“We don’t have,” a shop attendant at the Accra Mall said. “We had some on Wednesday but today we have run out of sanitizers,” she added.
Measures
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, this week, directed the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, to make available the cedi equivalent of US$100 million to enhance Ghana’s COVID-19 preparedness and response plan, as the WHO declared the situation a pandemic.
This amount, according to President Akufo-Addo, “is to fund expansion of infrastructure, purchase of materials and equipment and public education.”
This follows the President’s directive to suspend all foreign travels for public officials except critical ones.
The suspension ordered through the Chief of Staff, Akosua Frema Osei-Opare, said, “The directive, together with other measures being put in place by government, is intended to protect the general public from contracting the virus.”
Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration has suspended consular services in a lot of the countries which have recorded confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Ghana’s embassies in Spain, Italy, South Korea, Iran and China have all shut down their consular sections in the interim as these countries battle COVID-19.
Meanwhile the public has been asked to practise good personal hygiene to keep themselves and their families healthy.
The President urged that the usual handshake we are used to should be suspended for now.
He advised Ghanaians to refrain from further shaking hands until after a cure is found to the virus which has so far become an albatross around the neck of the world with no known cure in sight.
He also admonished Ghanaians to stop shaking hands completely, and cover their mouths when they cough and sneeze to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19.
To prevent the spread, the standard recommendations coming from the WHO is regular hand washing, covering one’s mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing, thoroughly cooking meat and eggs.
People are also advised to avoid close contact with anyone showing symptoms of respiratory illness such as coughing and sneezing.
Cases
On Wednesday, March 11, 2020, there were reportedly about 100 reported cases of the virus from 11 countries on the continent, with Egypt alone recording 59 cases.
They include Algeria, 20; Burkina Faso, two; Cameroon two; Democratic Republic of Congo, one; Egypt, 59 (includes 1 death); Morocco, three (includes 1 death); Nigeria, two; Senegal, four; South Africa, 13; Tunisia, five, and Togo, one.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri