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Ghanaian comrades, good evening. Eight (8) weeks have passed since our nation embarked on a coordinated and enhanced response to combat the Coronavirus pandemic, after we recorded our first two (2) confirmed cases. We have taken the necessary steps to aggressively track, test, isolate and treat infected people and their contacts, as a means of containing the spread of the virus among the population.
Measures such as the temporary partial closure of Accra, Tema, Kumasi and Kasoa, adherence to better hygiene and social distancing protocols, the prohibition of public gatherings and the closure of our schools and our borders have imposed considerable difficulties on us. But I am pleased that we appreciate that they are essential to saving lives and livelihoods, and I thank you all for your continued cooperation.
As of Wednesday, May 6, a total of one hundred thirty-five thousand nine hundred and two (135,902) tests had been carried out, with the total number of confirmed cases in our country at that time, in three thousand ninety-one (3,091), with three hundred three (303) recoveries and, unfortunately, eighteen (18) deaths. On Thursday, May 7, fourteen thousand and forty-six (14,046) tests were carried out, and this included eliminating the last set of delays. Our total confirmed cases, then, increased to four thousand twelve (4,012) positives, that is, nine hundred twenty-one (921) new cases.
Our recoveries were three hundred twenty-three (323), eight (8) people were seriously ill and the deaths were still at eighteen (18). It is important to highlight that five hundred thirty-three (533) of the nine hundred twenty-one (921) new cases registered between Wednesday and last Thursday are workers in a fish processing factory 2 located in Tema. The five hundred thirty-three (533) people were infected by one (1) person. Again, let me reiterate that these new nine hundred twenty-one (921) cases were delays that date back to April 26, and not necessarily over a twenty-four (24) hour period.
The commissioning of seven (7) more test facilities across the country, to complement the efforts of the Noguchi Research Institute, the Kumasi Center for Collaborative Research and the National Reference Laboratory for Public Health at the Korle Teaching Hospital- bu, it has meant that we have been able to eliminate all the accumulation of evidence, and that the report on infection cases since Friday, May 8 is already updated. On Friday, a total of five thousand two hundred and fifty-three (5,253) tests were performed, with two hundred and fifty-one (251) positives. On Saturday, two thousand two hundred and fifty-five (2,255) tests were carried out, and two hundred sixty-six (266) were positive. For today, Sunday, a total of three thousand forty-five (3,045) tests have been carried out, with one hundred sixty (160) positive tests.
These relatively low daily amounts of infections are welcome and reinforces the fact that the measures in place to help reduce person-to-person contact and help overcome the pandemic are working. So, like today, Sunday May 10, the country has carried out a total of one hundred sixty thousand five hundred and one (160,501) tests, with a total number of infections of four thousand seven hundred (4,700), with four hundred ninety-four (494) recoveries, five (5) critically ill people and four thousand one hundred and seventy-nine (4,179) people who responded to treatment.
Twenty-two (22) people, virtually all with underlying illnesses such as hypertension, diabetes, and chronic liver disease, have died unhappily. We must understand that the more people we analyze the virus, the more people we will discover as positive and, therefore, they will have the opportunity to isolate and treat them. If you don’t test people for the virus, you won’t find positive people, much less isolate them from the population and treat them, and prevent them from spreading the virus. In fact, if we had not been proactive in the improved search for contacts of infected people, and we would have depended solely on the tests carried out on people who went to the hospital, which is the practice followed by other countries, that is, routine tests Our total case count would have been maintained at 1,400 (1,413).
The other three thousand two hundred and thirty-two (3,232), that is, two thirds (⅔) of the population of positives, would not have been detected, and would still be within the population, infecting others without knowing it. I know that some political actors will want you to believe that our current numbers represent a failure by the government. Don’t envy them. They need to make such comments for their political survival. On the contrary, we must be emboldened knowing that the four thousand seven hundred (4,700) people infected so far with the virus have been identified, taken out of the population, isolated and are being treated.
Implementing our aggressive tracking, testing, and treatment strategy is our surest way to eradicate the virus. This early identification of people with the virus ensures that they do not transmit the virus to others; we have the opportunity to treat them; and it helps us to better understand the dynamics of the virus. The rapid implementation of all our policies has resulted in our low rates of infection, hospitalization, and mortality, some of the lowest in Africa and the world. We certainly must be doing something right in Ghana. Our country has administered more tests per million people than any other country in Africa and, in fact, the World Health Organization has contacted us to share our experience of grouping samples with other African countries, so that they can adopt this strategy and Also increase up to your testing capabilities.
Therefore, it is vital that we continue to maintain improved hygiene measures and social distancing protocols to contain the spread of the virus, as they are the surest way to quickly return to normal life. All interested agencies with whom I have interacted for the past three (3) weeks, in the health, work, religion, leadership, education, hospitality, tourism and creative arts sectors, share this view, because, collectively, we believe that are essential for our own survival. These groups are also involved on the road to reducing these restrictions, so that our social and economic lives can return to normal, while protecting lives at the same time. Those commitments will soon allow us to design a clear roadmap to ease the constraints.
In my speech to workers and the nation on May 1, I announced the extension of the closure of our borders for one more month as the means to continue stopping the import of the virus into our country. Tonight, I have come to your homes to announce that the ban on public meetings, as established in E.I 64, has also been extended until the end of the month, that is, on May 31. Therefore, during this period, public gatherings, such as holding conferences, workshops, parties, discos, drinking places, beaches, festivals, political demonstrations, religious activities, and sporting events, will continue to be prohibited. All educational facilities, private and public, are still closed. There is still a prohibition on funerals, other than private burials performed with no more than twenty-five (25) people.
It is noteworthy that the police are arresting and prosecuting people, regardless of their status in society, who violate these regulations. We cannot allow some people, for their narrow and selfish interests, to jeopardize the health, well-being and safety of the general population. If you do not comply with the law, you will face all its rigors. Ghanaian comrades, I, like you, would love to see the end of these restrictions. I know the difficulties each and every one of you have been through in the past two months. You have had to completely alter your way of life; you have had to stay home, except for specific purposes; you cannot travel outside the country; cannot go to church, and had to cancel activities generally associated with Easter; In this holy month of Ramadan, our Muslim brothers and sisters have to pray at home, rather than congregate in the mosque, and before the public celebration of Eid; parents have to bear the added burden of caring for their children who, instead of being in school, are currently at home; operators of taxis, taxis, buses, markets, hotels, restaurants, bars, and nightclubs have lost their patronage and, as a result, have lost much-needed revenues; Unfortunately, a significant number of people have lost their jobs due to the impact of the virus on our economy; Most of us want to hang out with our families, friends, and loved ones in a social setting, but we can’t.
As uncomfortable as these restrictions have been, we have no choice but to stay the course. We can only guarantee mutual security if we continue to adhere to them. As I said before, these restrictions cannot and will not be a permanent feature of our lives, and I hope to announce shortly the steps to systematically facilitate restrictive measures to return to normality. However, each of us can help accelerate this process if we continue to practice social distancing measures, washing our hands with soap under running water, avoiding shaking hands and using our masks every time we leave our houses. These measures must be respected by everyone.
We do this not only for ourselves, but also to decrease the workload of our health workers, who continue to be at the forefront of caring for those affected by the virus and caring for the sick in general. For our part, in addition to the incentive package instituted for all health workers, the Government has so far distributed the following to health facilities throughout the country: four million, two hundred and forty thousand, seven hundred and nineteen (4,240,719) gloves; two million five hundred seventy-six thousand three hundred thirty-three (2,576,333) nasal masks; sixty thousand eight hundred twenty-three (60,823) protective glasses; sixty thousand one hundred thirty-two (60,132) liters of disinfectants; fifty thousand seven hundred seventy (50,770) head covers; forty thousand nine hundred and ninety-two (41,992) dresses; forty-one thousand (41,000) medical scrubs; and thirty thousand seven hundred eighty-three (30,783) N-95 masks.
In addition, we have extended this gesture to other front-line actors who participate in the fight, with the presentation of five thousand (5,000) PPE to members of the media, and tomorrow, Monday, May 11, ten thousand facial masks produced in the country and more money will go to the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), to improve its ability to undertake the important work it is already doing. Let me once again thank health workers, including all those responsible for tracing, testing and treatment, for their heroic contribution to the fight against the pandemic. They will be remembered for a long time in our history. In advance, I say a cordial ayekoo to the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association, which celebrates its sixtieth (60th) anniversary on Tuesday.
This weekend, I chaired a three-day cabinet retreat, at Peduase Lodge, to examine in detail the measures aimed at reviving and strengthening our economy. I am pleased to reiterate that the Government is implementing a Resilience and Recovery Plan, with the general objective of finding more resources to strengthen the productive sectors of the economy to guarantee sustained economic activity. We are implementing a soft loan scheme of six hundred million cedis (GH ¢ 600 million), in this month of May, to support micro, small and medium-sized companies and, as you know, commercial banks, with the support of El Bank of Ghana has also instituted a three billion cedi (GH ¢ 3 billion) credit and stimulus package to help revitalize industries, especially in the pharmaceutical, hospitality, service and manufacturing sectors.
The Minister of Finance is working tirelessly to find additional resources to complement these amounts, including resources to finance the construction of eighty-eight (88) district hospitals, ‘Agenda 88’ and seven (7) regional hospitals, to be announced in the appropriate time for Parliament and the nation. Before ending this direction, it is essential that you raise an important aspect of the fight against this virus, which has not been given enough emphasis, but has to do with the change in attitude that will affect our lifestyles.
That has to be one of the pandemic’s permanent legacies. We have to improve our hygiene, our physical state and exercises, our diet, in general, our lifestyle, which will increase our immunity to diseases and viruses. For example, we are told that the key vitamins that strengthen our immune system are vitamins A, B6, C, and E. Fortunately for us in Ghana, all of these can be found in many of our foods, such as oranges, kontomire . , millet, cashew nuts, crabs, banana, okro, dawadawa, brown rice and mushrooms. Following a good diet, sponsoring our healthy foods, exercising regularly, guaranteeing our personal hygiene and improving our lifestyle habits should be part of our daily routines, which will help strengthen our immune system and help us in the fight against pandemic. .
Ghanaian comrades, this virus, as we have seen throughout the world, is no respecter of people and has wreaked havoc in every country on the planet. We can beat him by continuing to care for each other and being the guardian of the other. We are fighting a common enemy, and it is imperative that we do not allow religious, ethnic, or political differences to stand in the way of certain victory.
Therefore, we cannot allow some people, who wish to use these differences to sink our collective struggle, to succeed. Throughout our history as a people, we have had to overcome various trials and tribulations: slavery, imperialism, colonialism, tyranny and dictatorship, and we have overcome them all so that, with the help of the Almighty, we are today. , the construction of a free and independent State, a State that, despite the urgency of the crisis, is governed by democratic institutions and respect for fundamental human rights, especially freedom of expression.
This is as it should be, since we are determined in our generation to realize the dreams of freedom that animated and inspired the founders of our State. I am sure we will also overcome this pandemic. This too shall pass! Because the battle is the Lord’s! May God bless us all and our homeland, Ghana, and make it great and strong. I appreciate your attention and have a good night.
