Effective Monday, 30 March, parts of Greater Accra and Ashanti regions – the areas of Ghana most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic – were placed on lockdown, in accordance with President Nana Akufo-Addo’s announcement in his fourth address to the nation on measures to fight the new coronavirus. The rapid spread of COVID-19 around the globe has led many countries to institute a variety of prevention and mitigation measures, in some cases including drastic steps curtailing
citizens’ civil liberties. An example is the Chinese government’s near-total lockdown of Wuhan, where the virus first emerged – a measure widely credited with helping stop its rapid spread in that country. Other countries, including several in Africa, have since adopted similar policies as they battle to contain the pandemic. As of March 29, Ghana had recorded 152 cases of COVID-19 – most of them among recent arrivals from other countries – and five deaths. Facing sharp increases and an anticipated rapid spread, the Trade Union Congress, the Ghana Medical Association, and many others called on the government to declare a lockdown. Others opposed such a drastic step, arguing that the country’s socioeconomic characteristics – including a large informal sector, high rates of
unemployment and communal living, and limited access to water and sanitation services – would hinder the success of such a policy. Although the president stated in his address that residents in the locked-down areas could go out for “essential” errands such as buying food, banking, and using public toilets, the announcement led to panic buying of food items and cooking fuel, with resultant price hikes in the affected areas.
