Ghana

COVID-19: From morgue to cemetery; families no longer spend on funeral - Funeral service providers

Friday, February 05, 2021 at 5:11 PM by Priscilla Aklorbortu

- The funeral or death business is not happy with the outcome of the coronavirus pandemic

- According to them, the ban on funerals, with less than 30 people allowed to attend burial events, was hitting them hard

- They said bereaved families were spending less for burials as they are now practicing from morgue to cemetery

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The coronavirus pandemic has come with its own rules by which we are supposed to live by.

Unfortunately for us, these restrictions has a great impact on our very existence and cycle of life, starting from childbirth through to death and final funeral rights.

Not only did these restrictions have an impact on our life, but also on our businesses as well.

In 2020, when restrictions were announced by president Akufo-Addo to curb the spread of the virus, it lead to most people loosing their source of livelihood and other people almost out of businesses.

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A reduction of numbers in social gatherings has caused most event and industry players to have a dwindling stream of income.

COVID-19: From morgue to cemetery; families no longer spend on funeral - Funeral service providers Credit: UN Photo/Martine Perret and modified by author
Source: UGC

The funeral or death business is one of such industries that is not happy with the outcome of the coronavirus pandemic.

With the restrictions on funerals to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the country, most business owners in this sector are complaining of low patronage.

Most of these people have closed their shops since business is not moving on well like it used to pre-covid.

According to them, the ban on funerals, with less than 30 people allowed to attend burial events, was hitting hard and “frustrating.”

A dealer in funeral supplies, Madam Dorcas Antwi, in a report filed by Ghanaweb.com said the sector was “dying slowly.”

According to her, dead bodies were no longer being laid in state, and bereaved families were spending less for burials.

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She added that people were now unwilling to honour the dead with big funerals because of the pandemic.

Dorcas Antwi said it was getting dire with many families now practicing “from morgue to cemetery.”

She said there was an increase in demand for tomb flowers and garments for deceased persons when restrictions were relaxed, but not any more.

At the Gillman and Abbey Funeral Service Limited in Accra, John Coffie, the Managing Director said, “funerals are now conducted in a private manner rather than the traditional way...”

He said due to the restrictions, some clients were buying less expensive caskets because there would be no funerals.

Atta Kwaku John, an Undertaker, based at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, said COVID-19 and the restrictions were gradually throwing them out of job.

In other news, COVID-19 has killed seven more people in Ghana.

This brings the country’s death toll to 440. The country since the inception of this year witnessed an astronomical surge in active case count.