Supporting the waste workers during the Covid peak

General

How is the situation in your city/ country?
The situation of Covid in Ghana is mild. Some citizens are abiding by the Covid-19 safety protocols and others are not. However, there is another group of citizens who wish to abide by the Covid-19 safety protocols, but do not have the means to. An example is in the case of the informal waste workers. They are the frontline workers with less attention and more stigmatization. In view of this, Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO) during the Covid peak supported them with Covid relief items such as provisions, protective gloves, nose masks, sanitizers, among other items. GAYO is concerned about informal waste workers because these people come into direct contact with waste and unfortunately do not receive any special attention with regards to the work they do and the outbreak of the pandemic.

How did the atmosphere in your country change since the pandemic started?
The atmosphere in my country saw a drastic change. We saw something we had never seen before. Every single person was in a nose mask every single time. There was soap and water available almost everywhere for easy access to handwashing. Our body temperature was checked before we could have access to any building complimented with rubbing hand sanitizer on our hands. Busy mornings became rare because most of the working class had to work from home and there were restrictions on social gatherings which Ghanaians are so used to. All these and more really did change the atmosphere we were used to.

How are you and your family?
Thankfully, we are well. We are staying healthy and abiding by the Covid-19 safety protocols. However the pandemic affected many families and my family was no different. We were affected by the fact that some of my working siblings depend on gathering to get revenue for themselves but with the presence of the pandemic, that source of income was shattered because there was a ban on social gatherings. In the case of contracting the virus, we cannot tell if we contracted the virus because we have a system in Ghana where proper diagnosis is not done before you know it, it would be concluded that you’ve contracted the virus when in actual sense you’ve not. Some visit the hospitals to attend to other health issues and end up contracting the virus from the hospital back home. This made most of us reluctant to visit the hospital.

What is the biggest challenge for you during the crisis?
My biggest challenge during this crisis is the fact that I can no longer travel at my own convenience. Even when I get to travel, the inconveniences are a bit too much to deal with. Recently, I traveled to the UK to attend COP 26 and I felt so inconvenient due to many reasons, one of which includes testing for Covid every single morning before coming out of my place of stay. Even in my own country, I can’t greet people the way I used to, shaking hands and giving out hugs. Having to put on the nose mask everytime is so uncomfortable but we need to have it on regardless to stay safe. So in summary, my biggest challenge is abiding by all safety protocols regardless of the measures being comfortable or not, we need to abide by them. Again, I really feel sad for the waste workers because these are people I work closely with and looking at the nature of their work and they not having the appropriate protective equipment but work regardless is heartbreaking.

I really feel sad for the waste workers as they are not having the appropriate protective equipment.

Measures

When did you realize how serious the situation is?
I realized how serious the situation is when I had to start working from home. This is something most Ghanaians and my organization were not used to. Zoom meetings became the order of the day. There was no constant supply of WI-FI as I would have had in the office, family members kept interrupting my work, I couldn’t have the needed concentration as I would have had if I was working from my office. Also the unending updates of recorded Covid-19 cases and deaths all over the news was so alarming. This got so serious that I began to doubt is Covid really existed because we keep receiving updates about the deaths of our fellow citizens but we never know or hear of such persons. All things being equal, the fact that this was a global pandemic and narrowing it down, a national crisis, really scared me.

How did your government react to the crisis? Which measures/restrictions were taken first?
My government reacted to this crisis by closing down all borders leaving the international airport running and spreading massive awareness on how every public can abide by the Covid regulations.

Are you satisfied with the measures of your government? What was good/bad?
Generally, the spread of awareness of the virus and ensuring citizens abide by all safety protocols was a bold step forward. Closing down our borders was again a great move. However, the delay in closing down our international airport meant we could still receive people into the country by air which greatly affected the number of individuals in the country affected by the virus. The answer is a yes and no because although it saved us, it was very challenging.

What would you like to say to your government?
Covid is happening. Yes. It is affecting lives. Yes. People are dying. Yes. Aside from sensitizing the public on the safety measures to take and putting up various sensitization programs, they should do well to equip citizens with safety equipment such as gloves, nosemasks, sanitizers among others. The government should ensure that areas that have not heard of the impacts of Covid-19 should be recognized and information should be made to get to such areas as well as safety equipment. Particularly, the slums and villages.

Which sentence of a virologist/politician did you memorize the most?
‘Fellow Ghanaians’. This is now a popular phrase in my country. Our President uses it as an opening phrase every time he addresses the nation on updates on the Covid-19 pandemic. As much as we were in pain that time that phase brought smiles to our face every time it was mentioned.

The government should ensure that areas that have not heard of the impacts of Covid-19 should be recognized and information should be made to get to such areas.

The Virus

Do you know anybody who was infected with COVID-19 or even died?
Sad enough yes I do. This happened to a church member of mine who died after being infected with the Covid-19 virus.

Have you already done a Coronavirus test or have you been in quarantine?
Yes, I have done the Coronavirus test but have never been in quarantine.

Are you afraid of getting infected with the Coronavirus?
Yes, I am so I’m being cautious about staying safe and I’m abiding by all the safety protocols with the hope that I never get infected with the virus.

I´m abiding by all the safety protocols with the hope that I never get infected with the virus.

The lockdown

How long is/was your lockdown and what was allowed/what wasn´t?
The lockdown in my country was a partial one and it lasted for 21 days after several complaints from citizens. Businesses really suffered during this period as businesses were not allowed to continue.

Did you spend the lockdown time with somebody and what did you do during this time?
Yes I spent the lockdown period with my two sisters making us three living together. This was a very hectic period for me because I had to work from home so that I could get revenue to feed them. I started to exercise consistently every morning just to stay in shape. This was something new to me but staying home all day without going anywhere, for me, really required that I engage in some form of physical activity to stay healthy. This period was also interesting because I had more than enough time to strengthen the bond that exists between my sisters and I and this was a good thing for me.

What did you miss the most during the lockdown? What helped you?
I missed attending church service and I missed singing at church since singing is my hobby. Sadly, I lost my voice during that period from not constantly exercising it. Interaction with family, the bond growing stronger and the fact I had time to think and reflect really helped me.

During lockdown I missed singing at church.

Changes

How did your work situation change since the pandemic started (shorter hours, working from home, etc.)
I started working from home and worked longer hours due to boredom. Zoom and skype became the new norm. Less travelling and community enegement stopped.

How did your social life (relationship/friendships/dating) change due to the Corona crisis?
My social life changed drastically because usual meetings with friends and loved ones had to come to halt. Zoom meetings became the order of the day as well as phone calls. I couldn’t interact with them the way I know or the way I used to and this affected my relationship with them to an extent.

What impact has the Corona crisis on your financial situation?
It drained me financially. Being at home more often meant spending more on food and stuffs to keep one entertained. It also affected me socially due to less interaction with individuals and environmentally. I am someone passionate about waste and having to see the contant production and usage of nose mask was not friendly, when I know that there are no measures in place for its management.

Social distancing: How does your daily life look like at the moment?
I have to put on my nose mask everytime, keep sanitizers on me every time so as to apply them as frequently as possible. The traditional way of greeting I know is shaking hands can’t be done anymore. Virtual meetings are now very frequent which means less interactions with people.

The Corona crisis changed my social life drastically and drained me financially.

Perception

Who are to your opinion the heroes of this crisis?
For me, I would say the heroes of this pandemic are the frontline health workers and individuals who contracted the virus and survived. Living with the stigmatization and all but they had to fight through and stay strong.

What did the crisis show you?
The Covid-19 pandemic was the highlight of our environmental crisis. It made us aware that if we do not take appropriate actions, we would not be able to survive on our planet in the next coming years. It told us indirectly that the need for urgent environmental action is now.

What will you appreciate more after the crisis?
I would appreciate the fact that we do not need to put on nose masks after the crisis. We would be able to travel without too many restrictions, we would be able to meet up with our friends and loved ones once again, we would be able to shake hands and hug one another. I am really looking forward to having all that once again.

Which images will you never forget?
The number of people dying in the hospital without sick beds and the images on our screens that pop up every single time regarding the number of Covid cases and and the number of deaths.

Which stories/incidents/experiences touched/shattered you the most?
The incident of waste workers and Coronavirus touched me the most. They are faced with many health threats including inhaling toxic substances and lack access to health care. In the case of the pandemic, they needed all that and more but little or no attention was paid to them.

The Covid-19 pandemic was the highlight of our environmental crisis.

Perspective

What are you afraid of right now?
I’m scared of the fact the virus might stay longer than we expect it to. The variants that keep springing up are just not helping matters.

What gives you hope?
What gives me hope is the fact that we would overcome, we would survive this virus and it would belong to history soon.

Are you planning to travel within the next months?
Yes.

Would you get yourself vaccinated or have you already been vaccinated against COVID-19?
I have been vaccinated.

What can we all learn from this crisis?
Family matters more than we realize. In our worst times, family is all we could run back to. Also, work can be done anywhere. We do not necessarily need a workspace before we would work. This pandemic helped us work from home without necessarily going to our various places of work. And lastly, it has taught us that the world is linked and whatever happens in one country can affect the next as in the case of China and the other countries of the world with respect to Covid-19.

If you could give 2020 a headline, what would it be?
“The year the world froze”.

In our worst times, family is all we could run back to.