Speaking on an Accra-based radio station, Ablakwa said that the decision was to ensure effective virus screening was in place before foreign students travelling from affected West African countries, including Nigeria, Liberia and Sierra Leone, arrived in the country.
He said: “It is very likely that reopening of all tertiary institutions will be postponed while the inter-ministerial task force put in place measures to avert any such case.
“We looked at the possibility of students coming from the affected countries in the sub-region and how we can put in place screening mechanisms to ensure that these students have not contracted the deadly Ebola virus and that they are not coming to spread the virus on our campuses.”
He said the closure would continue until surveillance and screening at entry border points had been strengthened.
The deputy minister also hinted that the Ghanaian government was going to put a freeze on international conferences and public gatherings.
He assured the public that the inter-ministerial committee set up by the government and health institutions were ready and on high alert to handle any outbreak and prevent the spread of the deadly virus.
The Ebola virus has so far claimed more than 1,000 lives, with about 1,800 people infected in Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria since the outbreak of the disease in February.
The current outbreak, the worst ever, has spread to other countries such as Nigeria in recent months and is transmitted among humans through bodily fluids.
In Ghana, a total of 37 suspected cases have been evaluated and all have proven negative.
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