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Students resume academic work amid COVID-19
As pupils across the country return to school after nearly 10 months of closure due to COVID-19, the challenges of inadequate infrastructure have still resurfaced.
Ahead of the re-opening last Friday, some students and pupils in the capital, Accra, had prepared their classrooms and were ready to continue academic work which had been suspended for awhile.
Our photographer, Ms Lizzy Okai captured some students at the Accra Academy as they went through inspection and observation of safety protocols.
She had earlier visited the Emmanuel Presby Preparatory and Junior High Schools at Dansoman where the students were cleaning the environment. Thermometer guns, Veronica buckets, alcohol-based sanitisers among others were on site, with health personnel on standby to handle suspected COVID-19 cases.
Government had already fumigated a number of public schools and procured Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for students and pupils ahead of their return. But other schools have complained that, the PPE were yet to reach them.
Another photographer, Mr Geoffery Buta reports that some pupils at Jeninso in the Amansie West District of the Ashanti Region still carried tables and chairs on their heads to their respective classrooms to study.
In view of this, some parents have appealed to the government to come to the aid of the deprived schools and also fast-track the supply of PPE to schools where supply had delayed.
Besides, some parents have also threatened not to take their wards to school until they were satisfied with the safety arrangements for their wards.
Story and Pictures by Lizzy Okai and Geoffery Buta
The Dzidula Pink Foundation, a new organisation dedicated to cancer awareness, early detection, and patient support, has been officially launched in Accra, with a passionate call for national commitment to fighting the disease. The launch event, held last week Friday, carried the theme: “Beyond the diagnosis: A future of restoration, care and courage.”
Speaking at the event, Madam Abena Brigidi, founder and CEO of Nimed Capital Limited, emphasised that cancer remains one of the most devastating health challenges facing families across the country. “Cancer does not discriminate—it affects mothers, fathers, daughters, and sons. It drains families emotionally and financially, and behind every statistic is a human story and a future suddenly thrown into uncertainty,” she said.
Sharing her personal encounters with cancer, having lost both her husband and father to the disease, Madam Brigidi highlighted the emotional, financial, and physical scars left behind. “I stand here not just as a speaker, but as a witness to what cancer can take away,” she stated. “I have watched loved ones fight bravely, and I have felt the deep pain that loss leaves behind.”
She stressed that awareness and early detection are critical to reducing deaths, noting that many Ghanaians still lack access to proper screening, reliable information, and adequate treatment. She appealed to healthcare professionals, corporate institutions, policymakers, the media, and the general public to join hands in the fight. “Early detection saves lives. Your support today can lead to someone’s healing tomorrow,” she said.
Madam Brigidi further called for collective responsibility to sustain the foundation’s mission. “To our medical professionals, we need your expertise. To corporate partners, your resources. To the media, your voice. To policymakers, your support. And to the public, your compassion,” she urged. She also insisted that breast cancer awareness should not be limited to annual campaigns, saying, “Breast cancer awareness must not be seasonal.”
Mrs Diana Fafa Gozo, founder of the Dzidula Pink Foundation, shared her own cancer journey, describing the shock of diagnosis, the fear that followed, and the difficult path through treatment. Her experience transformed her pain into purpose and inspired her to create a foundation to ensure no cancer patient walks alone.
Mrs Gozo explained that many patients struggle not only with treatment costs but also with emotional resilience. She outlined the foundation’s initiatives, which include awareness and early detection campaigns, patient support funds, community outreach, and survival support circles. “This foundation is my offering of gratitude, courage, and compassion and a reminder that no one should walk the cancer journey alone,” she concluded.
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
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The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) says it will deploy teams of Public Health Officers, members of its Sanitation Taskforce, and labourers, including sweepers and janitors, across all sub-metros to support the third National Sanitation Day exercise.
It explained that these teams will be equipped with waste collection trucks, tippers, and other tools to help with desilting, refuse collection, and transporting waste to approved disposal sites.
The AMA reminded residents that failing to comply with the sanitation directive or refusing to participate in communal labour is an offence.
It said offenders risk a fine of up to 100 penalty units, imprisonment between 30 days and six months, or both, with repeat offenders liable to additional daily penalties.
It urged all residents, traders, transport operators, market women, shop owners, landlords, tenants, and businesses to actively participate in the exercise.
The AMA said it counts on everyone’s collective responsibility to keep Accra clean, liveable, and resilient, especially as the city approaches Christmas and the New Year.
By: Jacob Aggrey
