Parliament has been briefed on the state’s preparedness to deal with the Coronavirus disease should it make its way into the country and the measures put in place to prevent it from getting into Ghana.
The House was assured that the government through the Ministry of Health and other relevant stakeholders are on high alert monitoring the situation.
Minister for Health, Kwaku Agyeman Manu, who disclosed this to Parliament indicated that the Government has allocated an equivalent of GH¢2.5 million as start up towards implementation of the initial response for the national preparedness plan.
He explained that the government through the Ministry of Health has instituted preventive measures following a recommendation from the World Health Organization to member states to prepare and prevent further international exportation of the outbreak.
Ghana, he said, has therefore set its systems for containment including surveillance, early detection, and isolation, case and contact management.
The Minister assured that all areas of coordination, public health emergency management structures at all levels of governance have been activated and put on high alert.
“Measures have been taken to enhance screening at the points of entry, especially heavy traffic entry points to ensure newcomers into the country, citizens or foreigners, go through the processes to ensure safety,” he said.
Mr. Agyeman Manu noted that a training session has been conducted for Case Management Teams in Tema and Ridge Hospitals and in the process have been scaled up.
The exercise, he said, has been replicated in other centers in highly populated areas of Accra, Tamale, Kumasi, and Takoradi.
He assured Ghanaians that the state is in high alert and ready to deal with the situation hence there is no cause for alarm.
The Ministry, he said, continuous to work with development partners to monitor the situation and further strengthen systems to prevent the introduction of the outbreak in Ghana and to detect early infections and contain it.
He urged Ghanaians to observe strict rules of hygiene including washing hands before touching and after and using hand sanitizers to guard against infections and to report immediately to a medical facility with suspected symptoms.
Arrangements, he said, have been made to procure insurance cover for all front-line workers while the Ministry has also initiated a process to procure 10,000 pieces of personal protective equipment for their use.
Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mohammad Habibu Tijani, who also addressed the House on the situation said there are an estimated 30,000 Ghanaians across China, out of which there are close to 8,000 students.
The Embassy of Ghana in Beijing, he said, is in touch with them through their leadership.
He disclosed that the government has granted approval for the Mission in Beijing to expend US$4,286 to cater to emergency needs including medical masks, sanitizers, and food suppliers, especially for those in Wuhan and its environs.
About 300 Ghanaians, he said, are studying in Wuhan but 152 have been caught up in the lockdown of the city.
