ghananlpcommunity/ghana-gov-speeches-sentences huggingface dataset:
As a result of reports I have recently received that some final year JHS students were going hungry, in complying with COVID-19 protocols, I have just instructed the Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection to begin preparations to ensure that, as from 24 th August up to 18 th September, all five hundred and eighty-four thousand (584,000) final year JHS students, and one hundred and forty-six thousand (146,000) staff, both in public and private schools, be given one hot meal a day.
This is to ensure full observance of the COVID-19 safety protocols.
Through online learning portals, almost all continuing students in our Universities have completed their studies for the academic year.
The exceptions are the University of Cape Coast, the University of Health and Allied Sciences, Technical Universities, and some other Colleges.
After extensive stakeholder consultations, the decision has been taken for continuing students in these tertiary institutions to return to school, on 24th August, to finish their academic year.
Just as was done for final year students who returned to school, Government, through the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service, will ensure that all these tertiary institutions are disinfected.
Universities will be equipped with the necessary personal protective equipment, and those with their own hospitals and clinics will have isolation centres to deal with any positive cases.
All other institutions, without their own clinics and hospitals, will be mapped to health facilities.
The Ministry of Education continues to engage the Ghana Education Service (GES) and all relevant stakeholders to conclude discussions on the modalities surrounding the reopening of our pre-tertiary schools.
I will communicate, in due course, the decisions that will be reached from these consultations.
You can be rest assured that I will always take into prime consideration the safety and wellbeing of our children, teachers and non-teaching staff in the decisions that will be taken because I am determined to ensure that the education of our children is not unduly disturbed by this pandemic I know many still ask when our borders, especially our international airport, Kotoka International Airport, will be open.
Under my instructions, the Ministry of Aviation, the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority and the Ghana Airports Co.
Ltd.,have been working, with the Ministry of Health and its agencies, to ascertain our readiness to reopen our airport.
I want to ensure that we are in a position to test every single passenger that arrives in the country to avoid the spread of the virus.
The outcome of that exercise will show us the way, and determine when we can reopen our border by air.
I am hoping that, by God’s grace, we will be ready to do so by 1 st September.
Until further notice, our borders, by air, land, and sea, remain closed to human traffic.
For Ghana residents stranded abroad, a special dispensation will continue to be given for their evacuation back to Ghana, where they will be subjected to the mandatory quarantine and safety protocols.
Beaches, pubs, cinemas, and nightclubs are still to remain closed until further notice.
The limit on the numbers of persons who can attend conferences, workshops and award events, has now been lifted, subject to the maintenance of social distancing amongst participants, fresh air ventilation of the premises, and a two-hour limit for each session.
I know that the pandemic has adversely affected many lives and livelihoods.
It is for this reason that Government has implemented several measures such as free water and electricity, and funding to support small businesses, and tax reliefs, amongst others, to cushion the effect of the pandemic.
We are not providing freebies, we are providing critical help to households, families, and businesses, in the midst of this pandemic, because we care.
It is my conviction that, in times of crises, it is the duty of a responsible and sensitive Government to protect the population, and provide relief.
Fellow Ghanaians, let us remember at all times that this phased opening up of our country continues to put an obligation and responsibility on each one of us to remain vigilant, and respect the enhanced hygiene, mask-wearing and social distancing protocols that have become part and parcel of our daily routine.
They are proving to be effective, so let us employ them wholeheartedly.
That is the way we can restore, as quickly as possible, the blessings of normalcy for which we all yearn.
There is no room for complacency, we must be very much on our guard because some countries have experienced spikes after recording major achievements in containing the spread of the virus.
We should not go down that road.
Social distancing, enhanced hygiene, and the wearing of masks are obligatory for each one of us.
Fellow Ghanaians, the remarkable nature of us, the Ghanaian people, the first colonised people in sub-Saharan Africa to gain their freedom and independence from foreign rule, is manifesting itself again.
In the midst of the pandemic, we have been able to compile a voters’ register, arguably, the most credible voter register in our history; our democratic institutions continue to function effectively; there continues to be a vigorous public debate on issues of public policy; respect for the rule of law continues to be central to our governance; our economy, despite the severe shocks of the pandemic, is proving to be resilient, and is poised for rapid recovery; our agriculture is performing so that, despite the disruptions of the pandemic, food is still abundant in our markets; and the virus itself is being fought systematically.
Indeed, a stronger, healthier Ghana is being built before our very eyes, and the great majority of Ghanaians can see it.
Let us continue down this path, so that the dreams of freedom and prosperity that inspired the great patriots, who founded our nation, can find expression in our generation.
We can do it, so let us continue to work hard towards attaining our goal.
For the Battle is the Lord’s!!
I thank you for welcoming me into your homes for the sixteenth (16th) time, as the fight to defeat COVID-19 continues not only in Ghana, but across the World.
Day-in-day-out, countries, including our own, institute measures to try to limit and contain the spread of the virus, and return lives to normalcy.
Some of these measures have been successful, others have not worked, with some countries now experiencing hikes in infection rates, and the emergence of what is referred to as a 'second wave of the virus.
With the effectiveness of Government policies, the co-operation of you, the Ghanaian people, and by the grace of God, our nation has been relatively spared such unwelcome developments.
Indeed, since 31 May, when government decided to embark on a strategic, controlled, progressive, and safe easing of restrictions in the country, so as to get our lives and economy back to normal in safety, we have continued to witness low hospitalization and low death rates.
The number of active cases continues to be on the decline.
At the time of my last address, two weeks ago, the total number of active cases, that is persons currently with the virus, stood at one thousand, eight hundred and forty-seven (1,847) persons.
As at Friday, 28 August, the number of active cases has reduced to one thousand, and fifty-nine (1,059) persons.
A total of forty-two thousand, nine hundred and sixty - three (42,963) persons have recovered, and two hundred and seventy-Six (276) persons, a great majorty of them with underlying illnesses, such as hypertension, diabetes and chronic liver disease, have sadly died.
In as much as these statistics are encouraging, in contrast to what is pertaining in several countries across the world, we cannot afford to let our guard down.
We have to maintain, in a state of constant readiness, the enhanced infrastructure and expertise we have built during the period of the virus to cope with it.
I have been reliably informed that, in some regions of our country where there are no active cases, some residents are abandoning, altogether, the protocols, such as the wearing of masks, put in place to defeat the virus.
Indeed, the high compliance rate with mask wearing of persons surveyed by the Ghana Health Service in some selected areas of Accra, to which I referred optimistically in my last address, has, according to a new survey by the same Service, fallen alarmingly.
This is not acceptable, as the enhanced hygiene, mask wearing and social distancing protocols must now be central features of our Iives, and they must continue to remain so for some time to come, until we see to the elimination of the virus from our country.
Let me remind those amongst us, who want to continue to disregard these protocols, that severe sanctions exist in our laws for such persons, who will want to endanger the rest of the population through their actions and negligence.
The law enforcement agencies will, where necessary, apply these measures without fear or favour, ill-will or malice, and without recourse to a person's ethnicity, gender or religion.
Fellow Ghanaians, in Update No.15, I announced the easing of restrictions in some areas of national life.
I also indicated my hope that preparations and simulation exercises underway, including the installation of COVID-19 testing facilities at Kotoka International Airport, would give us a clear indication as to whether or not we could re-open the airport on 1st September.
After weeks of thorough work, I am satisfied that it is safe to do so.
Fellow Ghanaians, I am glad to announce that Kotoka International Airport will reopen and resume operations from Tuesday, 1st September 2020.
This decision has been communicated to international airlines across the world.
It has been well-established that the very first cases of COVID-19 in Ghana were imported into our shores.
We are determined to make sure this scenario does not recur.
The commitment to ensuring that the gradual easing of restrictions, including the reopening of our airports, does not lead to the importation or resurgence of the virus into our country, is firmly in place.
That is why the following measures have been taken and duly communicated to airlines wishing to resume flights to Ghana: Any passenger arriving in Ghana must be in possession of a negative COVID-19 PCR test result from an accredited laboratory in the country of origin.
The test should have been done not more than seventy-two (72) hours before the scheduled departure from the country of origin.
All airlines have been instructed to ensure compliance with this directive for all passengers wishing to travel to Ghana, and those airlines who fail in this regard will be duly sanctioned; disembarking passengers must do so wearing face masks; upon disembarking from the aeroplane, each passenger will undergo a mandatory COVID-19 test at the airport terminal, at a fee to be borne by the passenger.
The test result will be available within thirty (30) minutes; children under the ages of five (5) will not be required to undergo testing at the airport passengers, who test positive for COVID-19, will be handled by the health authorities for further clinical assessment and management; passengers, who test negative, can, thereupon, enter Ghana to go about their lawful activities, and will be advised to continue to observe COVID-19 safety precautions during their stay in Ghana.
The Ministries of Information, Health and Aviation, and their respective agencies- the Ghana Health Service, the Ghana Airports Co.
Ltd., and the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority - will spell out in further detail the protocols surrounding the re-opening of our international airport, and the procedures to be adhered to by passengers arriving in Ghana at the COVID-19 media briefing tomorrow, Monday, 31" August.
For the avoidance of doubt, our borders, by land and sea, will continue to remain closed to human traffic until further notice.
Fellow Ghanaians, I will now address the question of the re-opening of our schools.
With continuing students in the University of Cape Coast, the University of Health and Allied sciences, Technical Universities, and some other Colleges returning to school almost a week ago, to finish the academic year, the decision has been taken by the Ghana Education Service after consultation with the relevant stakeholders, for SHS 2 and JHS 2 students to return to school from 5 October to 14th December 2020 to complete their academic year.
With Junior High Schools operating with class sizes of thirty (30), and Senior High Schools with class sizes of twenty-five (25), SHS 2 and JHS 2 students will be in school for ten (10) weeks to study, and write their end of term examinations.
SHS 2 students in boarding houses are to return to their various dormitories on 5 October, whilst day students, respecting fully the COVID-19 protocols, will commute from home to their respective schools on the same date.
Prior to reopening, all Junior and Senior High Schools will be fumigated and disinfected.
Just as was done in the case of final year university, JHS and SHS students, all JHS 2 and SHS 2 students, as well as all teaching and non - teaching staff, will be given reusable face masks.
Each School will be provided with Veronica Buckets, gallons of liquid soap, rolls or tissue paper, thermometer guns, and 200 mils containers of sanitizers.
JHS 2 students will be given one hot meal a day.
Assemblies and sporting events remain banned; and the use by outsiders or school premises for other activities is still not allowed.
We will continue to ensure that each school, which does not have its own sick bay, has been mapped to a health facility, and care is provided to the sick by nurses assigned to them.
The Ghana Education Service, after further consultations, has decided to postpone the remainder of the academic year for all nursery, kindergarten, primary, JHS 1 and SHS 1 students.
The next academic year will resume in January 2021, with appropriate adjustments made to the curriculum, to ensure that nothing is lost from the previous year.
The relevant dispositions will also be made so that the presence, at the same time, in school of all streams of students, can occur in safety.
I appreciate fully the inconvenience and the financial burden the continued stay at home of children are posing to parents and guardians.
Fellow Ghanaians, these are a necessary price to pay in our efforts to protect the lives of our children, as well as to limit and contain the spread of the virus in our country.
In the next couple of weeks, a decision will also be taken on the resumption of contact sports, including football, taking into consideration the imminent participation of our national teams in international competitions.
As a known lover of football, I know how devastating its absence has been, and it is my hope that very soon we will all have the pleasure of playing and watching the beautiful game again.
Until then, non-contact sports are the only sporting events permitted to take place.
Beaches, pubs, cinemas and nightclubs are still to remain closed until further notice.
All other institutions that have been cleared to function are to continue to do so in strict adherence to the COVID-19 protocols.
Fellow Ghanaians, the difficulties imposed on our everyday lives, and the impact COVID-19 has had on our livelihoods, must serve as sufficient motivation for us all to continue to adhere to the enhanced hygiene, mask wearing and social distancing protocols that must characterize our daily routines in this country.
The more we adhere, the sooner we defeat the virus, and return to our normal way of Iife.
I am confident that this can be soon.
This challenge is not insurmountable.
We have it in us to surmount any challenge if we put our hearts and minds to it.
Whilst at it, let us continue to pray to Almighty God to keep a benevolent eye on us, and keep us from harm.
For the Battle is the Lords.
This is the seventeenth (17th) time that you are kindly opening the doors to your homes to me to enable me brief you about the issue of COVID-19, the steps being taken by Government to eliminate it, and the measures being implemented to ease progressively and safely the restrictions put in place to defeat the virus.
We, in Ghana, have certainly come a long way, and have made significant progress in combating the disease.
The angst, fear and panic exhibited by many, especially when the first two (2) cases were recorded on our shores, have been replaced, in recent weeks, by a growing sense of optimism and renewed hope that we are on our way to winning the battle against the pandemic.
The improvement in the situation is all thanks to the effectiveness of the measures put in place by Government, the co-operation and support of you, the Ghanaian people, and, most certainly, by the grace of Almighty God.
Nevertheless, I appeal to each and every one of you to continue to tread on the path constructed by Government, and follow religiously all the social distancing, mask wearing and enhanced hygiene protocols.
They are and will remain our weapons in this struggle against the virus.
In the same manner, we have to remember to continue improving our fitness by exercising and eating well, patronising our healthy Ghanaian foods, which will boost our immunity to disease, and help us in the fight against the pandemic.
16, exactly three weeks ago, the number of recorded active cases, that is persons with the virus, stood at one thousand, eight hundred and forty-seven (1,847).
This number, as at Friday, 18th September 2020, has reduced considerably to five hundred and seven (507) persons.
There are, currently, some regions in the country without active cases.
Greater Accra, Eastern, Ashanti and Central Regions account for some eighty percent (80%) of the active cases.
As at Friday, 18th September 2020, the total number of tests conducted is four hundred and seventy thousand, seven hundred and thirty (470,730).
So far, a total of forty-five thousand, two hundred and fifty-eight (45,258) persons have recovered, and two hundred and ninety-seven (297) persons, a great majority of them with underlying illnesses, such as hypertension, diabetes, chronic liver disease and asthma, have sadly died.
In the face of these encouraging statistics, I know there are many who are wondering why I have not announced a complete return to normalcy in all aspects of national life, because they believe the figures suggest we have turned the tide in the fight against the virus.
Yes, our death rate continues to be low, and our hospitals have, mercifully, not been overwhelmed, as there are, presently, only twenty (20) severe and critical cases.
Indeed, there are a lot of empty beds in our treatment centres, and the isolation centres have virtually no patients under care.
But truth be told: we cannot afford, at this critical moment, to throw caution to the wind, and destroy the incredible amount of work undertaken by Government, health officials, heroic frontline health workers, and members of the security agencies, in bringing us this far.
Now more than ever, we must be even more disciplined in our adherence to personal hygiene, mask-wearing, and social distancing measures that have become part of our daily routines.
That is the way to eliminate the virus altogether.
The experience in other parts of the world show us that the virus can return with a vengeance, once you let your guard down.
Fellow Ghanaians, in my last address, I announced the reopening of our international airport, Kotoka International Airport, signaling our gradual reintegration with the rest of the world.
Sixteen (16) out of the twenty-three (23) airlines that operated in Kotoka prior to its closure have, again, commenced flights to and from Accra.
As at yesterday, Saturday, 19th September, a total of ten thousand and sixty-one (10,061) passengers have been tested at Kotoka.
In spite of the requirement that all passengers must be in possession of a negative PCR test result upon their arrival in Ghana, a test which should have been conducted not more than seventy-two (72) hours before the scheduled departure from the country of origin, a total of twenty-six (26) positive cases have been recorded from the tests at KIA.
Let us pause for a moment and imagine what would have happened if these twenty-six (26) positives had not been detected, and had been allowed to mingle with the population.
Even though the cost of one hundred and fifty United States dollars (US$150) per passenger, for the mandatory airport COVID test, has been criticized in certain quarters, the value of the test in its speed, accuracy, and savings for passengers, who no longer have to bear the cost of the 14-day mandatory quarantine in hotels, has been clearly established.
It is worth noting that a lot of people, who have experienced at first hand the service being offered at our international airport, have praised the country for the innovation and farsightedness on display at our airport.
Let me assure you again that, as President of the Republic, I will do everything in my power to protect you and stop the importation of the virus into our country, or limit and contain its spread.
This is my solemn commitment to you.
Fellow Ghanaians, on Friday, 18th September, five hundred and thirty-one thousand, six hundred and seventy-four (531,674) JHS 3 students completed the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
SHS 3 students also, on 5th September, wrote the last paper of the West Africa Senior Secondary Certificate Examinations (WASSCE).
I am particularly excited at this development because, despite the fears and genuine anxiety expressed by some, and the criticisms proffered by some in the political space, these students have gone to school, studied, sat and completed their examinations unscathed.
Their forward march in life has not been interrupted.
And, by the grace of God, the predictions made by some of widespread infections and even deaths did not materialise.
I pledged I will be the last person to put the lives of students at risk, and I express my deep appreciation to all parents and guardians for the trust reposed in me and Government.
I pray for the success of the students in their exams.
As has already been announced, relevant arrangements and logistical deployments are being made for the return to school of second year Junior and Senior High School students.
Continuing students in the University of Cape Coast, the University of Health and Allied Sciences, Technical Universities, and some other Colleges have returned to school, and I have been reliably informed that adherence to protocols is high.
Long may it continue.
On Monday, 14th September, I extended, by Executive Instrument, the mandatory wearing of face masks by another three (3) months.
So, until 14th December 2020, the wearing of masks remains mandatory, and the law enforcement agencies will be required to ensure this directive is respected by all.
It has served us well in the fight against COVID-19, so I urge each and every one of us to wear our masks, and do so correctly anytime we leave our homes.
Towards the progressive easing of restrictions, Government has taken the decision to allow the resumption of training in all contact sports, taking into consideration the imminent participation of our national teams in international competitions.
Indeed, some national teams have already been given the dispensation to begin training, ahead of their international engagements.
All sports people, who are camped, are to be tested regularly.
Fellow Ghanaians, with respect to football, after due consultations with the Ghana Football Association, it has been decided that the Ghana Premier League and the Division One Football League will restart on Friday, 30th October, with a full regime of testing of the players, technical and management staff.
No spectators will be allowed at the training centres, and, when actual competition resumes, seating at all stadia will be limited to twenty-five percent (25%) capacity to ensure social distancing.
Wearing of masks by spectators at stadia will be mandatory.
The restart of all other sporting competitions will be determined on a case-by-case basis, pending consultations between the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the respective sport associations.