The government of Ghana and sanitation giant Zoomlion on Monday, January 4th 2020 showcased a fleet of state of the art fumigation vehicles, machineries as well as human resources to be deployed to various educational institutions as part of a nationwide disinfection and fumigation exercise ahead of school reopening.

The exhibition was meant to throw more light on efforts to fight the COVID-19 pandemic in the areas of sanitation and personal hygiene.

The ceremony follows the announcement of reopening of schools by President Akufo-Addo in his last address to the nation on measures taken to fight COVID-19 in the country.

The ceremony which was organized under the auspices of the Ministry of Information was attended by Ministers of State including the sector Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Minister for Education, Mathew Opoku Prempeh, Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Abena Daapah, Minister for Works and Housing, Samuel Atta Akyem, Minister for Health, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, Minister for Aviation Hon Joseph Adda and the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Ismael Ashitey.

In his opening address, Minister for Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah noted that the exhibition is part of a broader plan to detail government's preparedness for the reopening of schools. He said government will in the coming days hold series of engagements with various stakeholders so as to make sure educational institutions have the necessary safety measures in place for safe reopening of schools.

“As you will recall, His Excellency the President in his address to the nation last night mentioned that from this month, schools of all levels will open. Reopening is in a staggered process starting from kindergarten going through to tertiary institutions. Throughout this week there will be a number of engagements to update the Ghanaian public on the various exercises that are undertaken to ensure that schools can reopen safely”

The Managing Director for Zoomlion Group of Companies, Gloria Anti expressed her profound appreciation to government for partnering her company in fighting the coronavirus pandemic. She stressed that the exhibition is to showcase the company’s preparedness towards supporting government's COVID-19 response programme.

Minister for Education, Mathew Opoku Prempeh was hopeful the partnership with Zoomlion and its sister companies will get the fumigation and disinfection of schools done as quickly and efficiently as possible to allow them to reopen on a full scale.

Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Abena Dapaa lauded Zoomlion's efforts in investing and helping to improve the country's sanitation condition. She said this is part of series of partnerships with the sanitation company to rid major parts of the country off filth.

Among other dignitaries who were present were Members of Parliament (MPs), Heads of government institutions, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) and Traditional rulers.