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COVID-19 update: Tertiary institutions reopen today …as govt airlifts, distributes PPEs to schools nationwide
Final year students of tertiary institutions are expected back in school today to complete their semester work and exit examination after staying home for weeks as part of measures to curb the spread of COVID-19.
This is in compliance with President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s directive in his last televised address to the nation on May 31, during which he announced the phase opening of schools.
As part of safety measures, the government, through the military, on Saturday deployed quantities of Personal Protective Equipments (PPEs) in readiness of their return.
The items include 600,000 facemasks, 1,700 Veronica buckets, 200,000 units of hand sanitisers, 3,400 liquid soap; 3,400 tissue paper bundles, and 900 thermometers.
The beneficiaries are 234 tertiary institutions which have a total of 128,316 students and 44,282 staff.
Already all the campuses have been disinfected by the Ministry of Education as part of measures to prevent the spread of the virus.
The Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah told journalists before the deployment that government had the safety of students at heart and had therefore put these measures in place to safeguard them.
He said similar arrangements would be made for final year senior and junior high school students before they resume school in the coming weeks to keep them out of harm’s way.
Meanwhile the various tertiary institutions have, over the last few days, put in place their own measures to protect their students and staff.
According to Dr Daniel Norris Bekoe, University Relations Officer of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science of Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi, one student would be assigned to one room, all students would be provided with facemask and expected to wear it before allowed entry into every facility.
According to him, there would also be mandatory screening of all students upon arrival to the school while hand hygiene materials including buckets and sanitiser dispensers would be placed at vantage points
Out of the final student population of 13,000, he said only about 1,500 were expected in school including those offering human centered programmes, such as medicine.
Additionally those who could not participate in the vertical learning platforms would be given the opportunity to go to school to mop up and write final examination.
“All other students will continue their assessments and project works, quizzes online. By the end of June we should be done with all examination and by July 15 all results are supposed to be processed and submitted to college boards for consideration and we bring this semester to a close,” he said.
From the Central Region, David O. Yarboi-Tetteh, reports authorities of the University of Cape Coast (UCC) has established a COVID-19 Response Taskforce in collaboration with the Metropolitan Health Directorate to manage any suspected case of virus to prevent its spread among students and staff of institutions.
In addition to that, each halls of residence had allocated 10 rooms to serve as quarantine centres for the holding of suspect cases or persons who had come in contact with an infected person before they are moved to an isolation facility if they test positive.
Aside the university, the Zoomlion has disinfected other tertiary educational institutions, namely the Cape Coast Technical University (CCTU), Ola College of Education, Foso College of Education, Komenda College of Education and the Ajumako Campus of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW).
A visit to the campus of UCC last Friday, witnessed a number of university staff working frantically to ensure the institution’s readiness to welcome all final years to campus.
There are posters with the inscription, ‘No face masks, no entry’ at the halls of residence, library and the lecture halls.
In an interview with the Director of Public Affairs of UCC, Major Kofi Baah Bentum (rtd), he said, the institution had provided hotlines for students and staff of the university.
He said the university was ready to welcome all final year students and noted that the measures rolled out would help prevent the spread of the COVID-19.
He explained that, a number of policies including checking of temperature of all students, provision of washing sinks and Veronica buckets at designated points and provision of hand sanitisers would be provide by the university.
Similar arrangements had been made by CCTU, when Ghanaian Times contacted the Public Relations Officer Fred Opare Baako with the university partnering with the health directorate to isolate any confirmed case.
The situation was not different at the other tertiary institutions in the region such as the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), Komenda College of Education, and Ola College of Education.
Source: Ghanaian Times
Massive celebrations were recorded countrywide as the Black Stars opened their 2026 World Cup campaign with a 1-0 victory over Panama in Toronto on Wednesday.
Midfielder Caleb Yirenkyi scored the only goal of the match late in the game as he shot in a decent cross from substitute Brandon Asante.
The win gave Ghana a positive start in the competition, placing them in second position behind England, also with three points but with a superior goal aggregate.
After the final whistle, the streets and other viewing centres were turned into partying grounds as fans, mostly clad in the team’s paraphernalia, danced to several World Cup-themed music.
Others blew the vuvuzelas in joyous mood with others putting up a spirited ‘jama’ session.
Former New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate for the Adentan Constituency, Akosua Manu, has urged party members to move away from what she describes as an “entitlement mentality” and focus on unity, sacrifice and hard work as the party prepares for the 2028 general election.
In a statement titled “Is Loyalty a Queue?”, and posted on facebook, Ms. Manu argued that loyalty to the NPP should not be judged by how long a person has been in the party but by their contributions and commitment to its growth.
According to her, the NPP’s history shows that many of its leaders faced significant opposition from within the party before eventually leading it to electoral success.
She cited former President John Agyekum Kufuor as an example, saying he had to overcome resistance from influential figures within the party before winning power for the NPP in 2000.
Ms. Manu noted that after the party lost power in 2008, former President Kufuor faced criticism and accusations from some party members.
However, she said supporters eventually put their differences aside and worked together to rebuild the party.
She pointed to the experience of former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who, according to her, faced opposition from some factions within the NPP despite his long service to the party.
“His trials were ten times what Kufuor endured,” she stated, adding that Akufo-Addo eventually overcame the challenges and became President of Ghana.
Turning to the NPP’s current flagbearer, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Ms. Manu said he also faced resistance from different groups within the party while seeking leadership.
She praised Dr. Bawumia for contributing to policy-based political discussions in Ghana and for remaining composed following the NPP’s defeat in the 2024 elections.
According to her, party members must now rally behind him in the same way they supported former Presidents Kufuor and Akufo-Addo.
Ms. Manu, however, warned that internal divisions and a sense of entitlement remain major threats to the party’s future.
She argued that some party members place too much emphasis on how long individuals have belonged to the NPP rather than on their contributions and capabilities.
“This entitlement does not question impact. It does not ask what you sacrificed or what you built. It asks only how long have you been here,” she said.
The former parliamentary candidate cautioned that such attitudes could discourage committed members and prevent the party from selecting the best people for leadership positions.
She further called on the party’s incoming national executives to strengthen the NPP’s core values of sacrifice, honesty, integrity and dedication to national development.
Ms. Manu addressed the concerns of young party supporters, many of whom she said became discouraged following the NPP’s electoral defeat in 2024.
According to her, many young people remain eager to see the party return to power but are unwilling to support internal conflicts driven by personal ambitions.
She urged party elders to place the interests of the NPP above their individual goals and to demonstrate leadership that attracts rather than alienates members.
“The NPP is bigger than any one of us. It always has been. Our collective responsibility is to act like it,” she stated.
By: Jacob Aggrey
