The Government in its bid to contain and end the COVID-19 pandemic announced a partial lockdown in Accra, Kumasi, Tema, Kasoa and Obuasi.
As the safety directives start, some residents of the lockdown areas have been appealing to authorities to provide them with essentials in order to ease the inconvenience of the lockdown.
The President, Nana Akufo-Addo has put in measures through the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, the Local Government and Rural Development, and the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), working with MMDCEs and the faith-based organizations, are providing food for up to four hundred thousand (400,000) people and homes in the affected areas of the restrictions.
This then begs the question, is it possible to feed 400,000 people, without breaking the protocol of social distancing which is key in preventing the spread of COVID-19? And if it is possible, how should such activity in regard to food distribution be carried out?
So far the incident at Asokwa has proven that food distribution has not been properly planned with regards to the protocol of Social Distancing; where about 500 people scrambled just to get their share of the food distributed bt the government. Many recipients gathered in a crowd without face mask which is vital in protecting oneself.
This proves that the lockdown is inconvenient to the needy in our society.
But how can the situation be well planned and executed to ensure effective food distribution without risking the lives of the many poor that are supposed to be helped?
How can the situation be handled differently?
But we can still do something about the overcrowding. Supermarkets like Shoprite at Nungua Junction uses the method I call ‘one at a time’. A required number of people are allowed to enter at a time to enforce social distancing.
Walmart in the USA is also using floor markers to indicate the distance between customers, asking people to move in one direction in each aisle and avoid close contact with others. Customers are also directed to use a different door to exit than the one they entered.
We can employ some of these techniques in food distribution. First of all, we must make a face mask available the people to wear. Floor markers are also great to keep people from getting close to each other.
If we are distributing in a building, we ensure that the people move in one direction and they must exit through a different door.
I would also suggest that the government employ the services of security agencies, particularly police and the military to assist. Apparently, most citizens tend to adhere to most rules and regulations when a command is from a man or woman in uniform.
Food Distribution will indeed help the vulnerable in our society. But government institutions, celebrities, philanthropists and individuals distributing food to the needy must pay critical attention to how it is done or else it might be more fatal to us all.
Let us adhere to the social distancing protocol, especially those who will distribute the food. And do not forget your nose mask and gloves.
Edem Cedar – African Post Online
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Edem is a writer and loves to read. He believes that writing is an instrument of expression and an advocator of ideologies that can cause significant changes to our current dispensation and the future.
