The Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC) on Thursday, May 14, donated ₵10,000.00 cash and several equipment to the tune of €82,982.62 to the Ministry of Health in Accra, to help combat the COVID – 19 menace.
The cash component was given by the Research Scientists and the Association of Senior Members of GAEC, while the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) paid for the equipment to help Ghana on its fight against the disease.
Speaking at the event, The Director-General of GAEC, Prof. Benjamin J.B. Nyarko, noted that the items included, Covid-19 Positive Control systems, an MIC-PCR System by Eurofin Genomics, a TaqMan Fast Virus Master mix, a Class III Biohazard Safety Cabinet, a Class II Biohazard Safety Cabinet, an HP laptop among others.
“The Cost of the items is estimated at Euros 82,982.62 and we wish to express our gratitude to the Director-General of the IAEA, H.E Rafael Grossi, and the entire team for the support given to Ghana over the years, especially throughout this coronavirus pandemic”, he said.
The Director-General revealed that GAEC is putting in place the necessary protocols to enable it to use Gamma Irradiation Technology to sterilize some PPEs used in the country to ensure their safety, especially in this COVID-19 era.
Also, he added that the Ghana Space Science & Technology Institute (GSSTI) of the Commission is proposing to employ Deep Learning Approach (a technique used in artificial intelligence), to better understand the patterns of images produced and learning how the disease manifests itself in Computed Tomography (CT) Scans or X-ray images. “This can shorten the time of diagnosis as well as provide a lot of insight into the disease”, he said.
The Chief Director of the Ministry, Nana Kwabena Adjei – Mensah, on receiving the items on behalf of the Minister, thanked GAEC for spearheading this noble gesture.
Mr. Adjei – Mensah indicated that the donated PCR equipment and other items will be handed over to the University of Health and Allied Sciences to help boost their testing capabilities. This he said was due to the numbers testing positive in the Volta region and surrounding areas.
He opined that Ghana is one of the highest testing countries with about 9 testing centers and this equipment is going to further strengthen that fact.
The equipment and kits in addition to the cash donation were handed over to the Chief Director by the Chairman of the Board of GAEC, Dr. Kwaku Aning, who also doubles as the Governor for Ghana at the IAEA Board of Governors in Vienna Austria.
Present at the program was the Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archibald Letsa, The Vice-Chancellor of UHAS, Prof. John Owusu Gyapong, Chairman of the Parliamentary Caucus of the Volta region and some Directors of the Ministry of Health.
Also, present on behalf GAEC, was the Deputy Director-General, Prof. Shiloh D. Osae, The Director of GSSTI, Prof. Dickson Adomako, the Ag. Director of Administration, Mr. William K. Srekumah,
the President of Research Scientist Association, Dr. Adolf K. Awua, the Chairman of Association of Senior Members in Administration, Mr. Bismark T. Nyarko, the Head of Procurement, Mr. Paul Adika, the Head of General Administration, Ms. Justine Akpedonu and Dr. Shiraz Issahaku, a Research Scientist as well as other members of Staff.
By OCPA, GAEC
