Ghana eases lockdown measures, supports social distance

ANKARA (AA) - Ghana's President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Sunday night lifted the ban on social gatherings including places of worship.

In line with social distancing rules amid the coronavirus pandemic, he said, mosques and churches should host worshippers at one-fourths of their capacity.

“An abridged format for religious services can commence. Twenty-five percent (25%) attendance, with a maximum number of one hundred (100) congregants, can worship at a time in church or at the mosque, with a mandatory one metre rule of social distancing between congregants,” Akufo-Addo said, according to the Presidency’s official website.

He also urged religious leaders to encourage frequent hand washing and wearing of face masks, and disinfect places of worship before use.

The president said the easing of measures also applied on political activities, weddings, marketplaces, and government and private offices.

On April 20, Ghana’s president lifted a three-week partial lockdown imposed in the country making it one of the first globally to do so.

The tally of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the West African country has reached 8,070 cases so far with 36 deaths, according to figures compiled by the U.S. –based Johns Hopkins University.