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Salons, Barbers Reopen in Ghana's Capital After Partial Lockdown

Stacey Knott

   ACCRA - Ghana this week lifted a three-week partial lockdown in its
   capital, Accra, allowing businesses to reopen, including hair salons
   and barbershops. Critics, who say it's too soon to relax the
   restrictions, point out social distancing is impossible when someone is
   cutting your hair. Some Ghanaians, though, who during the lockdown
   lamented the scruffy state of their hair in social media posts, and
   even tried to get home services despite the risks, are rushing to
   salons to regain their style.

   In Ghana, salons and barbershops are "social pillars" and play a big
   part in the economy, according to Kuorkor Ayisa, owner of natural hair
   salon Twists and Locs Salon.

   Across Ghana, services can come from streetside barbers in converted
   shipping containers, to lavish, well-equipped salons. Ayisa saidthe
   hair business provides a way for many to support themselves, especially
   those without much formal education.

   She closed both her salon locations before the lockdown announcement to
   protect her staff and clients, but when the lockdown ended, she was
   inundated with inquiries about their reopening.

   Ayisa is following government calls to enforce strong hygiene and
   social-distancing measures. Her spacious salons can keep clients
   well-separated, and she has put measures in place, including frequent
   cleaning of surfaces, and requiring face masks.

   While the stylists are not able to maintain distance from their
   clients, she is confident her salons are doing their part to keep
   people safe, but clients must comply with their measures, and her
   stylists can turn uncooperative customers away.

   "If someone refuses to adhere to the protocols -- if someone is
   coughing and comes in and is not going to wear a face mask -- they
   would respectfully, politely indicate to the client we will not be able
   to serve them. That point really has to be understood by the client, if
   it isn't, it's not something we are willing to compromise on, because
   this is an issue of life and death," said Ayisa.

   People also have been trooping into Kingsmen Barbers since it reopened
   after the lockdown lifted.

   Owner Selorm Klutse saidthe three-week closure was hard on the business
   -- his staff and clients.

   He had people contacting him during the lockdown, looking for home
   services.

   "They called on the phone to ask if we are working, if we are going to
   offer home services, the thing is we couldn't have offered home
   services because the lockdown was enforced by the law enforcement
   agencies, so it wasn't possible. We had to obey the law," said Klutse.

   Since reopening Monday, he has also tried to institute a range of
   health and safety measures, including spacing clients, and high hygiene
   standards for customers and barbers.

   Public health expert Nana Kofi Quakyi from the New York University's
   School of Global Public Health has been back home in Ghana during the
   lockdown period.

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