Ghana’s President, Nana Akufo-Addo has announced the opening of sea and land borders, 2 years he announced the closure of borders to the West African country in the wake of the global pandemic – Covid-19.
The president made the announcement in his 28th Covid-19 address on Monday. The announcement takes effect immediately.
The president stressed that the economy would soon rebound and cited a “review premised on the background of rapidly declining Covid-19 infections, the relative success of the vaccination campaign … and the increased capacity in the public and private health sectors”.
The World Health Organization says Ghana has so far vaccinated over 14 million people with a single dose and over five million fully vaccinated – 16.3% of the population.

A vaccination overview obtained from https://ourworldindata.org/
The president also declared that all in-person activities such as private parties, churches, mosques, cinemas are to resume at full capacity as long as the audience is fully vaccinated while fully vaccinated travellers to Ghana will not have to take tests when they leave for the West African country nor will they have to take a test upon arrival in Ghana.
According to the World Bank, Ghana’s rapid growth was halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the March 2020 lockdown, and a sharp decline in commodity exports. The economy had grown at an average of 7 percent in 2017-19, before experiencing a sharp contraction in the second and third quarters of 2020.
The economic slowdown had a considerable impact on households. The poverty rate is estimated to have slightly increased from 25 percent in 2019 to 25.5 percent in 2020.
With the declaration of the opening of borders, Ghana’s economy is projected to recover gradually over the medium term, thanks to commodity price growth and strong domestic demand. The West African country largely depends on cross-border trade with Togo, Ivory Coast, and Burkina Faso.