“Ghana has recorded 1,500 cases of coronavirus” – Facebook post
Ghana has not recorded 1,500 coronavirus cases. A total of 137 cases had been confirmed as at the time the claim was made – March 27, 2020. The country currently has 152 confirmed cases of coronavirus.
Full text
A Facebook post on 27th March 2020 at 11:31 am GMT, claimed Ghana had recorded over 1000 coronavirus cases. It has generated 300 comments, 21 shares and 306 interactions.
“Breaking News. Ghana has recorded 1,500 cases of coronavirus,”
the post reads.
Although some comments blamed the incumbent government for the sudden rise of the cases, most of them showed disbelief. Some users asked for the source of information while others outrightly dismissed it as fake news.
The post was flagged to Dubawa as part of its Third Party Fact-checking partnership with Facebook.
Verification
Our verification started at the Ghana Health Service dedicated website for information on the coronavirus. According to the Ministry of Information, the website is the only accredited website dedicated to the update of coronavirus in Ghana. It is also the official source of information and data on coronavirus in Ghana.
Contrary to the claim, Dubawa found that Ghana’s confirmed coronavirus cases have so far not exceeded three digits. As of the time this fact-check was being written, a total of 152 cases have been reported.
On 27th March 2020, when the claim was made, there were two updates on the website. The first, at 9.15 am GMT, revealed that the country had recorded 136 confirmed cases – 58 from routine surveillance and 78 from travellers who have been mandatorily quarantined. The second update was at 7 pm GMT. It showed a total of 137 confirmed cases. Of the number, 59 were from routine surveillance and 78, travellers who have been mandatorily quarantined.
This was confirmed by the John Hopkins University and Medicine which has been monitoring and updating coronavirus figures across the world – it also reported 137 cases on March 27, 2020.
Conclusion
Ghana has not recorded 1,500 COVID-19 cases. A total of 137 cases were confirmed on March 27, when the claim was made. There are currently 152 confirmed cases as at 30 March 2020, 8.30 am GMT.
