Ghanaian Times: Flying in and out Ghana amid Coronavirus

The government yesterday opened Ghana’s airspace to allow for the resumption of flights in and out of the country.

The reopening, announced by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo in a nationwide address last Sunday, forms part of efforts to return the country to normalcy.

Ghana’s air, land and sea ports were closed five months ago as part of measures taken against the spread of COVID-19.

“I am glad to announce that Kotoka International Airport will reopen and resume operations from Tuesday, September 1, 2020. Any passenger arriving in Ghana must be in possession of a negative COVID-19 PCR [Polymerase Chain Reaction] test result from an accredited laboratory in the country of origin,” the President said.

It is commendable that Ghana has been able to institute measures that have made it possible for the country to reopen its airports and at the same time prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The Ghanaian Times is happy that a number of measures have been taken to prevent imported cases of COVID-19 from arriving in Ghana.

They include being in possession of a negative PCR test before boarding the plane to Ghana and HYPERLINK “https://simpleflying.com/flying-with-masks/”mandatory wearing of facemasks upon disembarking from the aircraft.

The PCR test, we are told, must be done not more than 72 hours before flying, and the passenger would be tested again at the airport on arrival.

Consequently, Ghana Airport Company is reported to have deployed more than 80 PCR test machines at the Kotoka International Airport as part of measures to ensure the safety of both new arrivals and workers at the country’s airports.

The machines, rated as 99.5 per cent sensitive, would enable rapid testing of all passengers who arrive at the airport to ascertain their COVID-19 status before being allowed into the country.

In all, it is estimated that about 1,200 passengers would be arriving on daily basis at the initial stages of the reopening and each passenger would be expected to undergo mandatory testing in addition to other laid-down protocols before he or she is allowed safe passage.

The Managing Director of the company, Mr Yaw Kwakwa, said apart from the high level of accuracy of the machines, they also offered convenience for passengers who would be arriving in the country.

We (of Ghanaian Times) are glad that gradually, the country is returning to normalcy with the easing of the COVID-19 restrictions and with the reopening of the airports, we pray that everything would go well so that all other restrictions would be eased.

Our caution, however, is that, we would continue to adhere strictly to the COVID-19 safety protocols and not to be off our guard.

We must definitely win the war against the coronavirus disease.