The University of Cape Coast (UCC) and other tertiary institutions in the Central Region have undergone the third phase of disinfection ahead of reopening of schools.
As part of measures being taken to subdue the spread of the Coronavirus, President Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in his 21st Address on Covid-19 Sunday January 3, ordered all educational institutions to be disinfected before resumption of students.
The tertiary institutions, which would be opened a week ahead of the basic and Senior High Schools are currently undertaking the exercise.
At the UCC, the Casely-Hayford and Kwame Nkrumah halls were disinfected today, Wednesday, January 6, which took care of the rooms, doors, windows, Junior Common Rooms (JCRs), lecture halls amongst others, with the remaining halls and other places scheduled to take place the days after.
Speaking with the media, the Central Regional Vector Control Manager of Zoomlion, Gideon Sogbey, said over 1,500 spray operatives were dispatched to spray all the 11 tertiary institutions in the region including UCC, UEW, Perez University, Komenda College of Education among others.
Since March last year, Mr. Sogbey said the current exercise, which is the fourth phase, is an improvement of the earlier ones utilising the latest state-of-the-art equipment secured by Zoomlion and inspected by the Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Abena Dapaah on Monday, January 3, at the Independence Square in Accra.
He added the exercise will continue every semester, before school resumes. Also, he said the disinfection will take three days to be completed in UCC and the entire Central Region.
On his part, Director of Public Affairs at the UCC, Major Kofi Baah Bentum (Rtd), indicated receiving the students back on campus wouldn’t be a problem since they recently invited them on campus to take their test whilst other schools were doing virtual examination. Due to this, he said they have an experience to fall on.
Adherence to the Covid-19 protocols is something Maj. Baah Bentum assured the university is also going to be strict on.
“…What we are doing is to ensure that they adhere to the protocols. In addition to that we have also set up task forces, some of the security guys that’s what they’ll be doing around but those in the lecture halls, if you don’t have the necessary PPE [face mask], you cannot be allowed to enter even though we will not sack you from the school,” he explained.
He also lauded how Zoomlion has undertaken the disinfection in UCC since the inception of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Zoomlion has been our partner since this covid broke out and in the past couple of times they have been here to disinfect, apart from the fact that they are timely, they are also very professional and they deliver on their mandate,” he noted.
The old soldier further averred the UCC is exploring other avenues the sanitation giants can be of help in the future due to the manner in which they deliver on their mandate.