COVID-19 Has Changed How Ghanaians Bury their Loved Ones

Funerals are a big deal in Ghana and it is not uncommon, in some parts, for a ceremony to last up to seven days, drawing thousands of crowds adorned in flowing red and black robes and gold jewelry. Some families even hire professional mourners to cry at the funeral of their loved one because “it serves as a reward to the person who has died,” says Adwoa Yeboah Agyei, who owns The Funeral Shop and Services, a franchise with locations across Accra. But a centuries-old tradition has come to a halt. Since Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo suspended all public gatherings in mid-March in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, burials have been limited to no more than 25 people in the West African nation. At Transitions, Ghana’s largest private funeral home, a once heavy flow of ceremonies now trickles at a slow pace. The home currently offers online live streaming from their chapel and where mourners across the globe can view the ceremonies of their loved ones

Source – africa.com