The influenza pandemic in colonial Asante: Lesson drawing for the fight against COVID-19 in the twenty-first century

Abstract

This paper pays attention to colonial strategies that were deployed to fight against the influenza pandemic among the Asante of Ghana. It does a comparative analysis of the outbreak and mode of spread of COVID-19 and influenza pandemics in Ghana and Asante, in particular. Based on the theory of lesson-drawing, the authors aimed to ascertain whether the strategies adopted to fight the current COVID-19 pandemic reminisce the earlier strategies deployed during the influenza pandemic of 1918. Based on primary and secondary data, the authors have constructed a history which proffers some insights into the fight against COVID-19. Authors conclude that the various health interventions toward the prevention and control of influenza in Asante during the colonial period were skewed in favour of Europeans and natives who worked within the colonial civil service. This did not support relevant strategies and efforts to reduce the spread of the disease at a faster pace. Despite several efforts made to curtail the spread of the disease, the colonial administration together with traditional authorities encountered challenges of inadequate health personnel, culture conflict, financial. The role of security agencies and the collaboration between the colonial administration and traditional authorities offer a very significant lesson for confronting the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana.