58,000 more health workers were recruited for COVID-19 fight

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has disclosed that his government recruited an additional 58,000 healthcare givers to boost its fight against COVID-19 during the peak of the pandemic.

Speaking at the National Honours and Awards at the Accra International Conference Center, the president said, following government’s commitment to ensuring the safety of citizens, it took some difficult but necessary decisions including healthcare recruitment.

“Our priority then was the health and safety of Ghanaians and that is why we put in place a comprehensive strategy in place to deal with the virus which incidences were unknown, and we were restrained from shaking hands and hugging each other, and we had to endure stress caused by the poking of our noses and throats anytime we underwent a PCR swap.”

Delivering the keynote address before presenting the awards, the president added that “the government also found the money to recruit, on a permanent basis, 58,041 more health professionals. COVID-19 inspired our domestic manufacturing capabilities and deepened our self-reliance. The pharmaceutical industry under my instigation responded positively to the need for the domestic production of sanitisers, disinfectants, and liquid soaps.”

The president also disclosed that his government procured GH¢81 million worth of personal protective equipment from local manufacturers to ensure the safety of Ghanaians.

“Furthermore, Ghana was able to procure some GH¢81 million worth of personal protective equipment such as face masks, garments, medical scrubs, and hospital gowns from domestic garment and textile manufacturing companies for health workers and students who wrote their final exams during the period.”

“Our relative success in winning the fight against COVID-19 is a testament to the tireless work of our researchers, scientists, advisors, public health managers, frontline healthcare workers, hospital staff, contact tracers, security services, public and private sector agencies, faith-based organizations, and so many others,” the president added.

Among the persons honoured by the state, the Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyemang-Manu, was conferred with the Order of the Volta-Companion.