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Confirmed COVID-19 tally now 5,918 … 1,754 recover, 31 die
Ghana yesterday recorded 183 new cases of coronavirus (COVID-19), putting its total tally at 5,918.
According to the Ghana Health Service (GHS), deaths resulting from the virus have risen to 31 from 29,although the number of recoveries remains at 1,754.
As it stands, the country’s active cases are 4,128 with five persons in critical and moderately ill conditions at the various treatment centres.
Director General of the GHS, Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, at a press briefing in Accra yesterday, explained that the new cases had come from six out of the 16 regions across the country.
The Greater Accra Region, which remains the country’s epicentre, leads the new infections with 108, Ashanti Region 63, Volta seven, Central two, Oti two and the Eastern Region, one.
The Accra Metropolitan Area, Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly, Ayawaso West, Ledzokuku and Tema Metropolis recorded highest numbers for the Greater Accra Region with Obuasi and Kumasi Metropolis leading the Ashanti Region’s figure.
The Savannah, Ahafo and the Bono East regions still remain the areas with no confirmed cases of the virus in Ghana.
Touching on the spike in the number of recoveries, Dr Kuma-Aboagye clarified that the “exponential recovery rate is because we have more cases and it takes about three weeks for people to recover so the backlog of people who have tested negative over the period is what is coming in to increase the recoveries.”
The Director-General indicated that Ghana’s recovery rate stands at 29.6 per cent with further breakdown of the recoveries to include the Greater Accra, 22 per cent, “Ashanti with 213 recoveries, (24 per cent), Central, 14 recoveries (2 per cent), Oti (28 per cent), Western, eight recoveries and with North East Region, they had two cases, one died and the other has recovered.”
Meanwhile Dr Kuma-Aboagye pointed out that in the event of COVID-19 related deaths, families and health workers were not allowed to touch or come into contact with the deceased.
“We do what we call supervised burials so we have trained environmental health service workers who handle and assist the families to undertake such burials to prevent infections,” he stated.
Adding his voice, Dr Badu Sarkodie, Director of Public Health, GHS, said all pathologists who perform autopsies on COVID-19 related bodies, are well equipped with right personal protective equipment to ensure utmost safety.
“We also advise they exercise extra caution in handling specific organs, especially the parts known to have the highest concentration of the virus like the respiratory and gastric terminal systems because it is quite risky to do autopsy in such areas.”
BY ABIGAIL ANNOH
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Prof Alidu Seidu files nomination for Tamale Central seat
The newly elected parliamentary candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for Tamale Central, Prof Alidu Seidu, has submitted his nomination forms to the Electoral Commission.
As of 10:00 a.m. today, he was the only person who had filed to contest the seat.
Nomination of candidates will close at the end of the day.
Associate Professor and Head of the Political Science Department at the University of Ghana Legon, Prof. Alidu Seidu won the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary primaries in the Tamale Central constituency with a landslide victory.
The elections, supervised by the party’s Elections and IT Directorate in the Northern Region, saw Prof. Seidu poll 840 votes out of the total valid ballots cast.
His closest contender, Lawyer Hanan Gundadow Abdul-Rahaman, secured 536 votes.
The other aspirants could not make significant gains, with Dr. Seidu Fiter obtaining 44 votes, Aliu Abdul-Hamid 23 votes, and the rest recording fewer than 10 votes each.
In all, 1,500 ballots were cast, with 6 ballots rejected and 7 spoilt ballots recorded.
The results were signed and declared by Dr. Arnold Mashud Abukari, NDC Northern Regional Director of Elections and IT.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) held parliamentary primaries in Tamale Central to choose a candidate for the upcoming by-election following the death of the sitting Member of Parliament, Dr. Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed. Dr. Mohammed, who also served as Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, tragically died in a military helicopter crash in the Adansi Akrofuom District on August 6, 2025, alongside seven others.
His passing left the Tamale Central seat vacant, as required by Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
The Electoral Commission has scheduled the by-election for September 30, 2025. While the NDC moved quickly to open nominations and vet aspirants, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) announced it would not contest the seat, citing the need to respect the somber circumstances and promote national unity.
By: Jacob Aggrey
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Ghana to locally refine its gold starting October 2025 – Sammy Gyamfi
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board, Sammy Gyamfi, has announced that plans are far advanced for the establishment of a state-owned gold refinery in the country.
Speaking at the 2025 Minerals and Mining Convention, Mr Gyamfi said the refinery will process locally mined gold into bullion instead of exporting it in its raw state.
According to him, it is unacceptable that Ghana, despite being a leading gold producer in Africa, continues to export raw gold known as dore.
He explained that the Gold Board, working with the Bank of Ghana and local refineries, will from October 2025 begin refining gold locally.
He also disclosed that an ultramodern assay laboratory will be built to ensure international standards in testing gold quality.
Mr Gyamfi noted that the refinery will be wholly state-owned and will help Ghana move away from raw mineral exports to value addition.
This, he said, will boost foreign exchange earnings, create jobs, and position Ghana as a hub for gold refining and jewellery production in Africa.
The CEO stressed that the project forms part of government’s strategy to ensure the country benefits fully from its natural resources and to transform the mining sector into a driver of economic growth.
By: Jacob Aggrey
