Veep urges world leaders to prepare for post coronavirus economic shocks

Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia says the post-COVID-19 global economic architect is going to be radically different from the previous one and requires countries in the production of goods and services to prepare themselves for the future.

Vice President Bawumia made the projection in a message posted on his social media platforms on Good Friday.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created huge global shortage of personal protective equipment (PPEs) even in advanced countries that has been hit hard by the contagion.

Some PPEs such as cover-ups, goggles, nose masks, boots, face shields and surgical gloves are in high demand, compelling pharmaceutical companies globally to scale up production.

In Ghana, for instance, the Akufo-Addo-led government has selected five local companies to produce 3.6 million PPEs within the shortest possible time, as demand by frontline health workers and other allied professionals has become imperative to protect themselves from contracting the respiratory disease.

As many countries around the world are implementing total or partial lockdown in COVID-19 hotspots, the use of online or electronic services has become imperative as churches and mosques are now streaming live sermons and prayers on Facebook, Conference Calls and other online portals to reach up to their audiences or congregations.

There are others who are busily transacting business and marketing their goods and services on the social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to reach up to their customers and potential clients.

In that vein, the Vice President's call for developing nations across the globe to stand in readiness for a post-COVID-19 pandemic is timely and relevant.

Over the past three years, Vice President Bawumia, the Head of the Government Economic Management Team, has been championing the digitisation agenda of the Akufo-Addo-led administration, culminating in the digitisation of some public services, including the licensing and registration of vehicles by the Driver Vehicle and Licensing Authority (DVLA), Paperless Port System, Electronic Business Registration by the Registrar General's Department, mobile money interoperability system rolled out by the Ghana Inter-bank and Settlement System, in partnership with the telecommunication firms and other financial institutions and Digital Property and Addressing System.

It is the expectation of many Ghanaians that the digitisation of the national economy would impact positively on the social and economic lives of many.