NEWS

Lockdown;Ghana opens its economy after three-week ban on social movement

Restrictions imposed on movement of persons within some parts of the Greater Accra and Ashanti Region was lifted on Sunday to enhance socio-economic development in the country.

The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo lifted the ban in a televised address to the nation today in Accra.

The decision, he said was to alleviate the hardship the three-week ban brought to the state and allow individuals to work for their survival.

“Although the lifting of the restrictions may come as a reprieve to the many whose livelihoods may have been hit hard following the imposition, access to some major sectors remains restricted,” Nana Akufo-Addo added.

He noted that four major cities including Greater Accra, Tema, Greater Kumasi and Kasoa, were placed under a three-week lockdown purposely to hold the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Nana Akufo-Addo explained that the lockdown was in effect to contain the spread of the virus, scale-up effectively the tracing of persons who had come into contact with infected persons, test them for the virus, quarantine those who tested positive if possible and isolate them for treatment.

He stated in his last address that, the initial two-week restrictions imposed on those areas  which saw a further seven days extension as the nation waited for test results from some 14,000 samples taken.

Despite the lifting of the lockdown, the President said borders would remain closed for extra two weeks to make it four weeks, adding that the ban on social gatherings was still in place.

“Lifting these restrictions does not mean we are letting our guard down, I am demanding even greater adherence to these measures,” he said.

Nana Akufo-Addo further stated that schools should remain closed and commercial vehicles including Trotro and Taxi should continue taking less number of passengers to maintain social distancing among passengers.

He urged the citizenry to take extra care and practice all the instituted measures to mitigate the spread, adding that “wear nose masks everywhere you go and make sure those masks are in hygienic condition.

Joyceline Natally Cudjoe

An Entertainment Columnist, Content Writer, Blogger, Novelist, Poet, and a Publicist. For business or story tip off, contact me on +233 24 646 6866 or email: [email protected]

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