Ashanti Regional Risk Communication Team on COVID-19 that gave the advice applauded the populace for generally accepting the practice of wearing nose masks but cautioned against neglecting other preventive protocols.

Mr. Felix Frimpong, the Regional Health Promotion Officer raised the red flag at a meeting of the committee in Kumasi to discuss the progress of risk communication on COVID-19 in the region.

The committee made up of the Regional Health Directorate, National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), Information Service Department (ISD), and the Ghana News Agency (GNA) is mandated to educate the public to make informed decisions on how to stay safe from COVID-19.

The Health Promotion Officer said all the recommended safety measures by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health were equally important and must be observed at all times.

"It is important for people to wear nose masks but it only complements the other protocols to protect the individual from infections", he emphasized.

Mr. Frimpong said it was useless for one to wear a nose mask but refuse to wash hands with soap under running water, observe social distancing, and also sanitize hands with alcohol-based sanitizers.

He, therefore, reminded the public that wearing a nose mask without observing the other protocols was not enough to guarantee protection against the virus.

Nana Akrasi Sarpong, the Regional Director of ISD said behavioral change towards adapting to new situations among Ghanaians had always been a problem and underlined the need to come up with tailor-measured messages designed to appeal to their conscience.   

He was however, optimistic that sustained public education with a demonstration of basic etiquettes would achieve the desired results.

Mr. Wilson Arthur, the Regional Director of NCCE bemoaned the blatant disregard for social distancing in various markets and called for logistical support for the public education drive of his outfit.

There was a unanimous decision to harmonize the public education drive of the various institutions to ensure a uniform message was communicated both at the regional and district levels.