The President of the Republic delivered his tenth speech to the nation on the coronavirus last night, announcing a programme of phased changes to the regulations on socialising and assembling in public places. The first changes become effective from Friday 5 June.
Significant among the developments is a return to the classroom and lecture hall. On 15 June university students will return to campus to complete their final examinations. Final-year junior high school and senior high school students will go back to school starting 22 June.
Junior high school class sizes will be no more than 30 and SHSs no more than 25. University class sizes will be halved.
From 5 June, up to 100 of the faithful at a time will be able to attend church or the mosque. Services and prayer sessions will last no longer than an hour.
Places of worship are to be disinfected and fumigated. Managers of churches, mosques, shrines and temples will be held responsible for ensuring spacing between visitors and good hygiene on the premises at all times.
Sports start to come back
Restaurants will reopen. Organisers of conferences, workshops and political activities other than rallies will be able to hold events but these will involve no more than 100 people at a time.
Enthusiasts of individual, non-contact sports such as tennis, high jump, weightlifting and golf will be able to resume normal activities.
Bars, drinking spots, nightclubs, cinemas and beaches are to remain closed. Large religious gatherings such as conventions and prayer camps remain similarly off-limits.
Burial services will now be able to include up to 100 adequately spaced mourners, but funeral rites cannot take place afterwards.
All national borders remain closed to movements of anything other than goods and cargo.
Pattern of development
The changes come in response to continuing public pressure as well as signals from public health officials about the direction of travel and rate of spread of the novel coronavirus disease.
In his Sunday night speech, President Akufo-Addo emphasised public health officials’ increasing ability to track, trace and treat COVID-19. Ghana now has a greater understanding of the disease, he said.
He announced that the number of confirmed cases of the disease nationwide has risen from 7,881 to 8,070 and the number of recoveries from 2,841 to 2,937.
President Akufo-Addo first announced the strictures on public gatherings on 15 March 2020. They became effective from the following day – closing schools, churches and mosques; imposing social distancing in all public spaces, including public transport; and clamping down on gatherings of more than 25 people at any one event.
Risk of resurgence
These latest changes will make it possible for schools to start returning to normal teaching arrangements. Weddings with up to 100 guests may also take place.
Although he welcomed the easing of restrictions on gathering, the president warned that a recurrence or surge in infections remained possible.
He urged Ghanaians to remain vigilant and become even more careful about maintaining hygiene. The country has also strengthened its national, regional and district response teams.
“We cannot afford to let our guard down and ruin the successes . . . over this period,” he said.
Watch President Akufo-Addo’s address to the nation on the spread of the coronavirus here.
To read the speech in full click on this link: Akufo-Addo speech: tenth address to Ghana on COVID-19.
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* This article was corrected at 7am: a previous version suggested university, SHS and JHS students were all returning to the classroom at the same time.
