I am embarking on a nine-day official working visit to France, Belgium and South Africa, as part of efforts being made to ensure our nation’s rapid and sustained post-COVID economic recovery, and have pre-recorded this update, prior to leaving the country.
I must, at the outset, express the gratitude of the nation to the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Osman Nuhu Sharubutu, and all Muslims across the country, for adhering to the request to have a subdued Eid ul-Fitr celebration, devoid of large public gatherings.
By and large, it is gratifying to note that many Ghanaians are adhering to the protocols, and it is heartening to see law enforcement agencies acting against persons and institutions flouting the regulations.
Until we vaccinate the requisite numbers of Ghanaians, and achieve herd immunity, which will help return our lives to normalcy, the Imposition of Restrictions Act, 2020 (Act 1012), will remain in force, and the security agencies will not relent in their efforts to enforce it.
We have seen a marked reduction in active cases, i.e., persons who currently have the virus, from five thousand, four hundred and forty-four (5,444) persons as at 26th February, to one thousand, three hundred and fourteen (1,314), as at 11th May.
Our rate of infection has dropped significantly from four hundred (400) a day when I last spoke to you to less than one hundred (100) now, and the number of persons who have recovered from the virus has also increased from seventy-seven thousand, nine hundred and seventy-two (77,972) to ninety-one thousand, one hundred and forty-six (91,146) within the same period.
One hundred and seventy-six (176) more persons, in that time, have also, unfortunately, lost their lives to COVID-19. Cumulatively, we have conducted one million, one hundred and twenty-one thousand, one hundred and sixty-eight (1,121,168) COVID tests.
Since I announced the arrival of the first batch of AstraZeneca vaccines from the COVAX facility, together with the procurement and receipt of others, we have rolled out two phases of our vaccination plan.
The first phase involved vaccinating a segment of the population in forty-three (43) districts, i.e., health workers, persons with co-morbidities, persons above the age of sixty (60), physically challenged persons, journalists, frontline security personnel, and a cross section of persons in the three arms of government.
The second phase involved vaccinating all other health workers across the country. Nearly a million people have now received the first dose of the vaccine.