Imposition of Restrictions (Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic) Instrument, 2020

Jurisdiction
Ghana
Citation
Executive Instrument 64 of 2020
Primary work
Imposition of Restrictions Act, 2020
Date
23 March 2020
Language
English
Type
Legislation
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Ghana
Imposition of Restrictions Act, 2020

Imposition of Restrictions (Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic) Instrument, 2020

Executive Instrument 64 of 2020

WHEREAS, on Wednesday, 11th March, 2020, the Director-General of the World Health Organization declared the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) a pandemic, pointing to the over one hundred and eighteen thousand cases reported in over one hundred and ten countries and territories around the world and the sustained risk of further global spread;WHEREAS, according to the World Health Organization, the COVID-19 is a new strain that was discovered in 2019 and had not been previously identified in humans, and whose signs of infection include respiratory symptoms, fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties; and in more severe cases, can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and even death;WHEREAS, on Thursday, 12th March, 2020, I, the President of the Republic, addressed the nation on the measures taken by Government in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, at which time there had not been any reported or confirmed case in Ghana;WHEREAS, on Friday, 13th March, 2020, the first two cases of COVID-19 were reported and confirmed in Ghana;WHEREAS, on Sunday, 15th March, 2020, the Minister for Information at a press briefing informed the people of Ghana that the number of cases of COVID-19 had increased to six and issued several guidelines for entry into Ghana and other related preventive measures;WHEREAS, on Sunday, 15th March, 2020, I chaired a meeting of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on COVID-19 Response, to review the public gathering advisories in the interest of public safety and protection of all people living in Ghana, and, subsequent to that meeting, addressed the nation on the new protocols for public gatherings;WHEREAS, on Saturday, 21st March, 2020, I chaired a meeting of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on COVID-19 Response, to review the country’s position, and, subsequent to that meeting, addressed the nation on additional measures to stem the spread of the virus, and protect the lives of Ghanaians;WHEREAS, the Minister for Health, having recognised the threat of COVID-19 to life and health and its potential to escalate and cause danger to the life and health of people living in Ghana, exercised the powers conferred on the Minister under sections 169 and 170 of the Public Health Act, 2012 (Act 851) and declared a public health emergency, pursuant to the Declaration of Public Health Emergency (Coronavirus COVID-19 Pandemic) Instrument, 2020 (E.I. 61); andWHEREAS, in order to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and protect public health and public safety, I am satisfied that there exist circumstances which require the imposition of certain restrictions, pursuant to subsection (1) of section 3 of the Imposition of Restrictions Act, 2020 (Act 1012).NOW, THEREFORE, in exercise of the power conferred on the President under subsection (1) of section 2 of the Imposition of Restrictions Act, 2020 (Act 1012), this Instrument is made this 23rd day of March, 2020.

1. Imposition of restrictions

(1)There is imposed, by this Instrument, restrictions on
(a)public gatherings, including
(i)conferences;
(ii)workshops;
(iii)funerals;
(iv)festivals;
(v)political rallies;
(vi)sporting events and sporting clubs;
(vii)private parties and other social gatherings;
(viii)night clubs, drinking spots and event centres; and
(ix)religious activities in churches, mosques, shrines and at crusades, conventions, pilgrimages and other religious gatherings; and
(b)travel to Ghana.
(2)All public gatherings set out in paragraph 1 (1) (a) have been suspended.
(3)Despite paragraph 1 (2), a private burial may be carried out with not more than twenty-five persons in attendance.
(4)All universities and other tertiary institutions, training institutions, senior high schools, basic schools, public and private schools, nurseries, crêches, and such other schools have been closed down.
(5)The Ministry of Education, in collaboration with the Ministry of Communications, may, as far as practicable, run distance learning programmes.

2. Duration of restriction

A restriction imposed under paragraph 1 (1) (a) is for a period of three weeks, subject to paragraph 6.

3. Geographic areas

This Instrument applies to the entire territory of Ghana.

4. Exemptions

(1)Paragraph 1 (1) (a) does not apply to the following facilities or establishments:
(a)a service, manufacturing or industrial workplace;
(b)a market;
(c)an establishment in the nature of
(i)a supermarket;
(ii)a shopping mall;
(iii)a restaurant;
(iv)a hotel; or
(v)a drinking spot;
(d)the security services; and
(e)essential services.
(2)Where there is an exemption under subparagraph (1), there shall be
(a)social distancing maintained between patrons and staff, and among staff of the facility or establishment; and
(b)compliance with enhanced hygiene procedures, including the provision of running water and hand washing soap, alcohol-based hand sanitizers and disinfectants.
(3)The Ministry of Transport shall work with public and private commercial transport services to ensure enhanced hygienic conditions in all vehicles and terminals, by providing, among others, running water and hand washing soap, alcohol-based hand sanitizers and disinfectants.
(4)The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development shall, in collaboration with the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies, co-ordinate measures to enhance conditions of hygiene in all markets.

5. Restrictions on travel to Ghana

(1)Further to paragraph 1 (1) (b), all borders of Ghana, by air, land and sea, are closed to human traffic for a period of two weeks, subject to paragraph 6.
(2)Any person who entered Ghana on 21st or 22nd March, 2020,
(a)is subject to mandatory quarantine for a period of fourteen days and shall be tested for COVID-19, and
(b)shall be taken to a designated medical isolation centre for treatment, where the result of the test is positive.
(3)Subparagraph (1) does not apply to the transportation of goods, supplies and cargo to Ghana.
(4)Any person who, prior to 21st March, 2020, entered Ghana from a country that had recorded two hundred or more cases of COVID-19 shall undergo self-quarantine for a minimum of fourteen days, in accordance with the guidelines for self-quarantine.
(5)A person who is determined by the relevant health authorities to be unable to undergo satisfactory self-quarantine shall be put under mandatory quarantine by the relevant health authorities.
(6)A person who shows symptoms of COVID-19 during the period of self-quarantine shall be tested for COVID-19, and where the result of the test is positive, that person shall be taken to a designated medical isolation centre for treatment.

6. Review of restrictions

Where the exigencies of the situation require, the duration of restriction specified under paragraph 2 and the restrictions on travel to Ghana under paragraph 5 may be varied in accordance with subsection (2) of section 4 of the Imposition of Restrictions Act, 2020 (Act 1012).

7. Interpretation

In this Instrument, unless the context otherwise requires,"communicable disease" means an illness caused by a specific infectious agent or its toxic products which arises through transmission of that agent or its products from an infected person, animal, or inanimate reservoir to a susceptible host, either directly or indirectly through an intermediate plant or animal host, vector, or the inanimate environment;"epidemic" means the rapid spread of a disease, including Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), cholera, flu and other communicable diseases, among people;"essential services" include(a)water supply services;(b)electricity supply services;(c)health and hospital services;(d)waste management services;(e)air traffic and civil aviation control services;(f)meteorological services;(g)fire services;(h)air transport services;(i)supply and distribution of fuels;(j)telecommunications services; and(k)public and private commercial transport services;"security services" mean(a)the internal and external intelligence agencies referred to under the Securities and Intelligence Agencies Act, 1996 (Act 526);(b)the Police Service;(c)the Armed Forces;(d)the Prisons Service;(e)the Immigration Service;(f)the National Fire Service; and(g)the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority; and"social distancing" includes maintaining a physical distance of one metre away from a person or avoiding direct contact with a person or object in a public place during an epidemic, to minimise exposure and reduce the transmission of infection and covers the following measures:(a)mandatory quarantine;(b)self-isolation;(c)protective self-separation; and(d)voluntary avoidance of crowded places.
Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-AddoPresident of the Republic of Ghana
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23 March 2020 this version
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