Coronavirus: Ghana’s Northern Boarders remain Exposed

security at the Northern borders remain porous as travellers into the country are unchecked

Coronavirus: Ghana’s Northern Boarders remain Exposed
Ghana’s Northern Boarder

Ghana’s northern borders with Togo and Cote D’Ivoire, remain vulnerable to unchecked Covid-19 victims, in spite of the president’s directive for officials to tighten security at all points of entry into the country.

Checks at the Tatale border, which is Ghana’s main entry point with its eastern neighbor, Togo and Chache in the Bole District, which leads into Cote D’Ivoire, revealed that travellers move in and out without proper scrutiny.

According to Radio Ghana, some travellers who expressed worry about the situation on the Ghanaian side of the border and want authorities to act quickly to prevent the potential spread of COVID-19.

Per reports from GBC online, a source at the Ghana immigration service has disclosed that officers have not received any protective PPE or kits.

The officers are compelled to use their own resources to purchase sanitizers.

The situation at the Regional office of the immigration service in Tamale is no different.

 

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Though a number of foreigners visit the place to transact business, the environment appeared exposed.

Hand sanitizers were reportedly being procured by individual officers, while the only bottle of hand sanitizer available as at the time of the visit was empty.

The Government of Ghana has issued a travel advisory discouraging all travels to the country as part of its precautionary measures in wake of the coronavirus outbreak in Ghana.

This was disclosed by the Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, in a news briefing on the virus outbreak at the Information Ministry on Sunday, March 15, 2020.

The Information Minister noted that all persons except Ghanaians, who have within the last 14 days, visited countries with at least 200 cases of Covid-19 will not be permitted into the country. This is to take effect immediately today.

He added that, allowed to enter the country will be required to mandatorily self-quarantine for 14 days. Persons who are unable to satisfactorily do so, will be quarantined by the state.

However, the porous nature of the Ghana’s Northern borders poses a huge hurdle in properly implementing the directive, as visitors into the country through the Northern borders are seldom scrutinized.