Vaccinate, adhere to COVID-19 protocols as christmas approaches-Ghanaians urged

Accra, Dec. 08,GNA – Dr Franklin Aseidu-Bekoe, Director of Public Health, Ghana Health Service, has called on Ghanaians to get vaccinated and adhere to the safety protocols as Christmas approaches.

He said with the attendant influx of international travelers, increased in-country travels and the emergence of the Omicron variant, it was possible for a surge hence, the need for all to protect themselves.

Dr Aseidu-Bekoe made the call at the joint launch of two projects, dubbed, “Pandemic management in catchment communities in times of COVID-19 and beyond” and “Comprehensive Pandemic Management for Employees, Families and Communities”.

The projects, being implemented by GIZ, seeks to strengthen the existing health systems in Ghana against the pandemic.

“We need industry players to enforce adherence to the safety protocols and also get staff vaccinated. We need to save ourselves, our families and the nation”, he stated.

Recounting the various measures undertaken by government, Dr Aseidu-Bekoe, noted that the country had experienced three waves since March 2020 like most other countries with a threat of a fourth wave.

According to him, the relative low burden of COVID-19 in Ghana had the collective effort of all including the government machinery, the private sector, development partners, nongovernmental organizations, civil society, traditional and organized groups, and the media.

He said with the increasing emergence of new virulent strains and poor adherence to safety protocols, further increased the risk of COVID-19 in the country however, the availability of vaccines had been helpful.

He urged Ghanaians to sustain the momentum to the end as the fight was not over until the pandemic fizzled out.

The projects, implemented with local partners is, funded by the German government, through the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development and implemented by G1Z through the developed programme.

The two projects were implemented in parallel with a lot of synergies but a stronger focus on companies, employees, families and their communities in the beverage as well as other industries.

It is aimed at contributing to an immediate response to the pressing needs of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the sustainable strengthening of the Ghanaian health system in order to be better prepared for future pandemics.

Source: Ghana News Agency