Foreign Nationals Report of Deficiences in Border Control Measures Against Ebola in Ghana, Niger and Mali

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), some foreign nationals who have sojourned in Ghana have disclosed some of the procedural lapses by Ghana’s Immigration Service (GIS) while securing the border against Ebola.
These foreign nationals who travel by road, report that along Ghana’s borders there are no medical screenings of travelers seeking admittance into Ghana.
The only form of inquisition of the health status of those traveling into Ghana consists of a cursory examination of the yellow fever card. The yellow fever card is an internationally recognized card, which provides information about a person’s immunization against the mosquito borne yellow fever disease.
According to some individuals interviewed, this card can be procured at the border for $8.20.
The lax border control is not only a preserve of Ghana; mmigration officials of other West African countries including Niger and Mali are equally culpable.
Some of the foreign nationals who visited Ghana have indicated that there is little public education about the disease in their country of origin. For some of them, they just heard about Ebola on the radio in the last week.
One of the travelers interviewed who was making his way back to Niger, Mr. Mousa Ali however commended the Togolese border control for doing a yeoman job in screening passengers that seek to come across its borders.
The Togolese in his opinion are very judicious in carrying out their mandate at the border and subject all travelers to screening for the Ebola Virus Disease.
Well as the Ghana government continues to streamline its efforts towards Ebola education and prevention of transmission of the disease, it is the hope of all Ghanaians that it will pursue a more comprehensive border control initiative.
Photo Credit:Panoramio