Ghanaian traders in Elubo in the Western Region, have welcomed the ropening of the country’s land and sea borders two years after closure over the outbreak of COVID-19.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as part of measures to ease the restrictions brought on by the pandemic, on Sunday, March 28, 2022, announced the reopening of land and sea borders effective Monday, March 28.
The Ivory Coast side of the border is expected to reopen on Friday, April 1, 2022.
Some traders who shared their excitement with Citi News said they were pleased to hear the President ‘s announcement, only that, they will need government to support them to resuscitate their dying businesses.
“I was very happy when I finally heard the good news. I think this has been a long time coming. The closure of the borders has really affected my business. But all in all, we will take it in good fate.”
“What we want from government now is to help us revive our businesses. If there is a way we could be given some soft loans to help us back on our feet, we will be very glad, a trader said.
Another trader said “this is good news. But considering how long it took for this to happen, the damage has already been caused. We need support to help us revive our businesses.”
Ghana’s land, sea and air borders had been closed since the onset of the coronavirus two years ago as part of measures to prevent the virus.
The air borders were subsequently reopened amidst tight COVID-19 protocols and testing.
Some border communities in the country held demonstrations to demand the reopening of the land borders, suggesting that the closure is of no use as some persons continue to use the borders illegally.
In the heat of these, President Akufo-Addo said it was not the right time to reopen borders, amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.
The Ghana Health Service had also urged the government to keep the country’s land borders closed as part of measures to ensure that the Omicron variant does not spread.