Roads and Highways Minister, Kwasi Amoako Atta has disclosed that five new interchanges are to be built on the Accra-Tema motorway as part of the expansion works on the stretch.https://nkaros.data.blog
The Minister further revealed that the current Tetteh Quarshie interchange will also be remodelled, to ease the flow of traffic as part of the project which will also see the 19-kilometre dual-carriage highway turned into six lanes.
Government will by March 15, 2020, announce the contractor who will be working on the motorway extension project, the Minister said while speaking on Koforidua-based Dadi FM, Wednesday. Ongoing works on the interchange at Tema end of the motorway are also expected to end by June 15, 2020, he added.
He also stated that the road from Ofankor in Accra to Nkawkaw in the Eastern Region, will within the next couple of months, witness “massive rehabilitation” with three interchanges to be built between Ofankor and Nsawam.
In a related development, Mr. Amoako Atta said some 123 contractors engaged to work on roads in cocoa-growing areas (cocoa roads), have returned to site.
This was after their documents were regularised by the Ministry, he said.
The contractors were engaged by the erstwhile National Democratic Congress regime but suspended their works and left the project sites, following delayed payments after the New Patry Party took over power.
Mr. Amoako Atta said about 87 new contractors have also been appointed after consultations between his Ministry and the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) under the Agric Ministry, to construct roads in cocoa-growing areas.
Aidoo-Richard Sagacious https://www.nkaros.data.blog Aidoo Richard Sagacious is a script writer, blogger and a founder of nkaros.data.blog/ (Nkaros Updates). For any associate, contact and interact with him on ….. +233553136439 / +23323 569 9136
Xiao Mi took to social media to share her experiences of taking part in the coronavirus vaccine trial in Wuhan Photo: Weibo
There may have been diarrhoea, high temperatures and a fair bit of apprehension, but 108 people from Wuhan can proudly say that this week they became the first in the country to be injected with a possible vaccine for the novel coronavirus.The trials got under way in the central China city on Thursday, just three days after CanSino Biologics – the pharmaceutical company that developed the product in cooperation with the Chinese military – was given the green light by Beijing.https://nkaros.data.bloghttps://nkaros.data.blog
According to information published on China’s clinical trial registry, the volunteers – aged from 18 to 60 and in good health – were divided into three groups of 36 and then given either a low, medium or high dose of the vaccine at a facility owned by the city’s armed police force.
In a report by Science Daily , Wang Junzhi, a fellow at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said that after receiving their injections, the participants would spend 14 days in quarantine under close medical observation.
In a rare move, some of the volunteers took to social media to recount their experiences to the public.
“I was a bit fearlessly naive when I signed up,” said a young woman with the nickname Xiao Mi, who was in the low dosage group.US-CHINA TRADE WAR NEWSLETTERGet updates direct to your inboxSUBSCRIBEBy registering, you agree to our T&C and Privacy Policy
“It only took a day from me being notified to getting the injection,” she said on Weibo, China’s Twitter-like platform.
The vaccine was developed by pharmaceutical company CanSino Biologics in cooperation with the Chinese military. Photo: Weibo Xiao said she read up about the possible side-effects, like allergic reactions, online and was scared after receiving her shot. But that was “probably the worst thing”, she said.
“Two people from our batch saw their body temperatures rise to 38 degrees … and some had diarrhoea,” she said, adding that all of the side-effects passed quite quickly.
What was more important, Xiao said, was that although she was apprehensive, by taking part in the trials she felt she was doing her bit for society. “I feel I can bear the consequences,” she said. “I want to rise above the simple interests of a normal person for once. We should be thanking all those who have stood in front of normal people.”Xiao also confirmed earlier reports that the first person to receive a shot of the possible vaccine was Chen Wei, a major general and military scientist who is also heading up the trialhttps://nkaros.data.blog
Major general Chen Wei (second right) is leading the trial in Wuhan and was the first person to be given a shot. Photo: Weibo Another of the volunteers was Li Ming, whose wife, Wang Feng, recently recovered from a relatively mild case of Covid-19 – the disease caused by the coronavirus.
“From the onset of symptoms until now, I have experienced a lot of difficulties in getting a diagnosis and treatment,” Wang was quoted as saying in the Science Daily report.
“My husband has accompanied me through this, and he fully understands how difficult it is for a patient.”
Mr Alex Josiah Adzew, Chief Operating Officer, GOIL (R presenting the items to Brigadier General Nii Adjah Obodai, Commander, 37 Military Hospital (L).
Indigenous oil marketing company, GOIL Company Limited has presented personal protective equipment (PPEs) and disinfectants valued at GH₵50,000 to the 37 Military Hospital to support the fight against the Covid-19 virus.
The items comprised 100 pieces of full body gear; 100 pieces of surgical gown; 10,000 pieces of hand gloves; 100 gallons of hand sanitisers; 100 gallons of rubbing alcohol, and 75 gallons of disinfectants.
The 37 Military Hospital becomes the third institution to benefit from the oil marketing company’s benevolence within the Covid-19 crisis period as the company had already extended support to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), and the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU).
The company has also donated an amount of GH₵200,000 to the National Covid-19 Fund to support government’s efforts in combatting the disease. The Group CEO and Managing Director of GOIL, Mr Kwame Osei-Prempeh, donated the amount to the Chief of Staff, Mrs Akosua Frema Opare at the Jubilee House recently in Accra.
Group CEO and Managing Director of GOIL, Kwame OseiPrempeh, presenting the cheque to the Chief of Staff, while Mr. Alex Adzew, COO of GOIL looks on.
Presenting the items at a brief ceremony at the 37 Military Hospital Wednesday, the Chief Operating Officer of GOIL, Mr Alex Josiah Adzew said the gesture was in keeping with the company’s commitment to give back to society.
He said the company recognised the serious nature of the coronavirus disease and its implications on the country, hence its decision to support institutions that are at the forefront of the fight as part of its corporate social responsibility.
“This is part of our corporate social responsibility. We have already made some presentations to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital and the GPRTU. We have also contributed GH₵ 200,000 towards the Covid-19 Fund. As the leading oil marketing company in the country, we want to be very responsible and to be seen as part of the nation’s effort in fighting Covid-19,” he said.
Adjustments Mr Adzew revealed that the company has also made significant adjustments in its operations to guarantee the safety of its staff in response to the various preventive measures declared by the government.
“A lot of things have changed. Most our staff are working from home. We have made significant adjustments in our operations to ensure that we keep minimum staff and not endanger anybody and sail through the situation,” he said.
He said, although, the company is experiencing low patronage at its stations, “we are managing because these are not normal times. We believe that things will get to normal in the not long distant future.” He implored its customers to adhere to all the preventive measures outlined the government to forestall an escalation of the disease.
Adjustments
Mr Adzew revealed that the company has also made significant adjustments in its operations to guarantee the safety of its staff in response to the various preventive measures declared by the government.
“A lot of things have changed. Most our staff are working from home. We have made significant adjustments in our operations to ensure that we keep minimum staff and not endanger anybody and sail through the situation,” he said.
He said, although, the company is experiencing low patronage at its stations, “we are managing because these are not normal times. We believe that things will get to normal in the not long distant future.” He implored its customers to adhere to all the preventive measures outlined the government to forestall an escalation of the disease.
Gratitude
Receiving the items on behalf of the hospital, the Commander of the 37 Military Hospital, Brigadier General Nii Adjah Obodai, expressed profound gratitude to GOIL for the gesture done the hospital. “We appreciate GOIL so much for coming to our aid with these essential items. It so critical to us and we say thank you for the support. This will go a long way in assisting us as personnel to deal with the issues that we have as far as Covid -19 is concerned,” he said
The Ghana Chamber of Mines has made a donation of GH¢11.5 million (the equivalent of $2 million) to the Ministry of Health and allied institutions as part of the mining industry’s voluntary contribution to the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.https://nkaros.data.blog
The Chamber, led by its President, Eric Asubonteng, made the donation at a brief ceremony on Thursday, 9th April 2020.
Producing member companies of the Chamber that contributed to the donation are Adamus Resources Ltd, AngloGold Ashanti Iduapriem Mine, AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine, Asanko Gold Ghana Ltd, Chirano Gold Mines, Golden Star Resources, Gold Fields Ghana, Newmont Ghana and Perseus Mining Gh. Ltd.
The donation, according to the Chamber, will go into the procurement of essential medical equipment and consists of: GH¢3.3 million for 20 Ventilators and accessories to the Ministry of Health for distribution to hospitals across the country;
GH¢ 5 million to the key testing centres across the country to support the testing of 25,000 Covid-19 cases. This is broken down into the following: GH¢ 2 million to the Noguchi Medical Research Insti to support the testing of 10,000 Covid-19 cases; GH¢2 million to the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine (KCCR) to support tes of 10,000 Covid-19 cases; and GH¢ 1 million to the National Public Health Referenc Laboratory of the Korlebu Teaching Hospital to suppo testing of 5,000 Covid-19 cases.
The remaining amount of GH¢3.2 million has been used to procure 7,000 complete sets of PPEs to frontline health workers and to support other Covid-19 logistical requirements made up of:
Hand Gloves- 7,000 boxes Coverall- 7,000 pieces Goggles- 7,000 pieces Face Shield- 7,000 pieces Face Mask (Surgical)- 7,000 N-95 Respirators- 7,000 Thermometer- 1,000
An Affiliate member of the Chamber, Rikair Company Ltd, also donated three oxygen concentrators to the Ministry of Health.
Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Asubonteng said just as the World Health Organisation (WHO) has recommended, the critical step of increased testing should be done quickly and effectively to facilitate isolation and containment of the infection.
“It is our fervent expectation that this donation will ease the pressure on the government and free up much-needed resources for other essential aspects of the national strategy for Covid-19,” he said.
He added: “You may have heard about the measures individual member companies of the Chamber have put in place to protect our employees, contractors and host community from the infection. These include extensive internal Covid-19 protocols on our operations, as well as donations at the local level to health facilities, local government institutions and community groups.
“As a good Ghanaian corporate citizen, even as we seek the promotion of our respective business interests, we at the Ghana Chamber of Mines recognise the need to also identify ourselves with progressive national efforts to protect the people and institutions in our host communities and the nation at large.” Mr Asubonteng also stressed the need for Ghanaians to heed the advice of the Ghana Health Service and the medical staff as “…we put our shoulders to the wheel to safeguard our dear country from the effects of this pandemic.”
He further urged individuals and businesses to collaborate with government to ensure that the nation returned to normalcy as soon as possible in order to protect the value chain of both the formal and informal sectors of Ghana’s economy.
“The mining industry thrives on discipline as well as upholding the health and safety of our employees and host communities; hence we pledge our unflinching support to the government and its experts as we work collaboratively to stop the onslaught of COVID-19,” he said.
(CNN)New York City officials say that Hart Island, which for decades has been used as the final resting place for people who died unclaimed, will also be used for unclaimed coronavirus victims.Mayor Bill de Blasio responded Friday to concerns that mass burials would be necessary because of the high number of bodies caused by the pandemic.
Drone photos appeared to show groups of caskets being covered with dirt in long trenches on Hart Island.”There will be no mass burials on Hart Island,
” he tweeted. “Everything will be individual and every body will be treated with dignity.”The mayor said in the tweet,
“The heartbreaking numbers of deaths we’re seeing means we are sadly losing more people without family or friends to bury them privately.
Those are the people who will be buried on Hart Island, with every measure of respect and dignity New York
Papa Owusu Ankomah was reportedly confirmed positive on Friday
Ghana’s High Commissioner to the UK and Ireland, Papa Owusu Ankomah has reportedly been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus.
Reports say Mr. Owusu Ankomah tested positive for the Covid-19 on Friday, April 10, 2020, and has been sent to the Intensive Care Unit in a London Hospital.https://nkaros.data.blog
The Head of Ghana’s Mission in the UK and Ireland since June 2017, is, however, said to be responding to treatment.
Back home in Ghana, President Nana AKufo-Addo told the nation in a televised address Thursday night that the country’s tally now stands at 378 with six deaths while four individuals have made a full recovery of the deadly infection.
See below, the Regional distribution of case-patients for Ghana for the months of March and April 2020, as published by the Ghana Health Service on April 10.https://nkaros.data.blog
Papa Owusu Ankomah was reportedly confirmed positive on Friday
Ghana’s High Commissioner to the UK and Ireland, Papa Owusu Ankomah has reportedly been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus.
Reports say Mr. Owusu Ankomah tested positive for the Covid-19 on Friday, April 10, 2020, and has been sent to the Intensive Care Unit in a London Hospital.https://nkaros.data.blog
The Head of Ghana’s Mission in the UK and Ireland since June 2017, is, however, said to be responding to treatment.
Back home in Ghana, President Nana AKufo-Addo told the nation in a televised address Thursday night that the country’s tally now stands at 378 with six deaths while four individuals have made a full recovery of the deadly infection.
See below, the Regional distribution of case-patients for Ghana for the months of March and April 2020, as published by the Ghana Health Service on April 10.https://nkaros.data.blog
Musician-turned-politician, Kwame A-Plus, has urged the government to fly in one of its diplomats, Papa Owusu Ankomah, who has tested positive for coronavirus, to a hospital in his constituency.
Mr Owusu Ankomah tested positive for the Covid-19 on Friday, April 10, 2020, and has been sent to the Intensive Care Unit in a London Hospital, the reports say.
Papa Owusu Ankomah was reportedly confirmed positive on Friday
A-Plus, known in private life as Kwame Asare Obeng, believes the Mr Ankomah, who is also Member of Parliament for Sekondi in the Western Region, should experience the same health care system available to his constituents.
“…as he enjoys better healthcare in the UK, he should ask himself, what will happen if the people of Sekondi who voted for him to become MP for many years test positive to coronavirus. Will they get the same healthcare he is getting in the UK?
“If yes, the please bring him to the hospital in his constituency for treatment. He’ll be fine,” A-Plus posted on Facebook.
The Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has said that he is proud f his skin colour and continent Africa and therefore does not care if he is called black.
He said that the people of Taiwan started have been attacking his race three months ago, while others have been sending him death threats due to his global efforts to fight the dreaded novel Coronavirus pandemic.
“I can tell you personal attacks that have been going on for more than two, three months. Abuses, or racist comments, giving me names, black or Negro. I’m proud of being black, proud of being Negro,” he told reporters on a conference call from the organization’s Geneva headquarters on Wednesday.
“I don’t care, to be honest … even death threats. I don’t give a damn,” an upset Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
He added that he would not accept to be insulted by some ‘super power’ world leaders who are bent on denigrating the black African community.
“When the whole black community or Africa is insulted, I won’t tolerate. I say people are crossing the line. Even death threats I didn’t care, I didn’t even respond but when it is personal or as a community people start to insults us, that’s enough…we can’t tolerate that.”
“Three months ago, this attack came from Taiwan. We need to be honest. I will be straight today. From Taiwan, the Foreign Ministry also, they know the campaign. They didn’t disassociate themselves. They even started criticizing me in the middle of all that insult and slur, but I didn’t care,” Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus charged.
Dr Ghebreyesus explained that he is speaking about this now because he has had enough from the so-called world ‘super powers’.
“I care about when humanity is insulted…I care when they cross our line and when the black community is insulted as community…if I tolerated three months, then I can tolerate three years, 30-years, 300-years. No problem if it’s personal…if it is targeted to Tedros,” he stressed.
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus gave an assurance that “we will do everything that is right at WHO. We will do everything that we can to serve humanity and we will do everything that will help us have no regret at all.”
Mrs Akosua Frema Osei Opare receiving a cheque from Dr John Amaglo President, Ghana Institute of Surveyors
The Ghana Institution of Surveyors has developed an app that will help trace suspected COVID-19 affected persons in real time.https://nkaros.data.blog
The President of the Ghana Institution of Surveyors, Dr John Amaglo, said the application is also able to help with the monitoring and evaluation of the disease situation in the country.
He added that the Institute together with build environment professionals have developed a system that will allow health authorities to easily find densely populated areas where the disease is spreading horizontally.
This will help health officials to restrict entry and exit points and also create makeshift medical facilities to treat the affected people in the community.
Dr John Amaglo, revealed all these when they presented a cheque for GHC50,000 to the Chief of Staff, Mrs Akosua Frema Osei Opare, at the Jubilee House.https://nkaros.data.bloghttps://nkaros.data.blog
He added that they are working closely with the technical team on COVID-19 and would soon make a presentation on the next step towards the adoption of the systems. He said, “if the systems were adopted, we should be ahead of the virus”. On her part, Mrs Osei Opare said she was grateful to them and other companies that have contributed towards the fight against the pandemic.
She said the systems developed by the Institution of Surveyors would go a long way to help if adopted adding that the President was working tirelessly to ensure that spread of the disease was curtailed. She said, “contact tracing was laborious and therefore the app that has been developed and any other invention would help a lot and are very welcome.”
Nkaros updates Ghana 