Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, Ghana’s Health Minister has disclosed that government plans to construct new hospitals across the country in its quest to provide quality healthcare for Ghanaians.
He made this known when the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, cut the sod for the construction of the Eastern Regional Hospital in Koforidua.
Addressing the gathering, Mr Agyeman-Manu indicated that, it is of much value that the Eastern Region with 11.5% of the country’s population and the third most populous region after the Ashanti and Greater Accra be provided with a befitting state of the art ultra-modern health facility to meet the ever-increasing healthcare needs of residents.
According to him, the Ministry of Health has made significant progress in addressing the infrastructural gap in the health sector with massive support from the president, Nana Akuffo-Addo.
He said the reconstruction of the Koforidua regional hospital is in fulfilment of government commitment to ensure universal health coverage to all citizens in Ghana in line with government vision under the sustainable development goal.
He affirmed that government has completed works on many health facilities: 10 polyclinics in the central, five in Greater Accra, Upper West regional hospital, and Ga-East district hospital which coincidentally is the current treatment centre for the battle against coronavirus pandemic.
He also revealed district hospitals that have been slated for completion by October this year including, Somanya, Weta in Volta, Akaba, Dupe and Kolon, Bekwai, Tepa, Nsawkaw and Twifo Praso Hospitals respectively.
He added that the retooling and reequipping of four health facilities in Eastern region including, Aburi District Hospital, Tetteh Quarshie memorial hospital in Mampong, Kyebi Government hospital and Atibie hospital are ongoing.
Mr Agyemang-Manu stressed that construction of five health facilities in the Western and Western-North region – Akontomra, Elubo, Bogoso, Tarkwa Nsuaem, Wasa Tarkwa, and the upgrade of Mpohor health facility is on course.
He said, there is a progress in the construction of 15 CHPS compounds and another 26 located in some selected district in regions such as Bono, Central, Eastern, Ashanti, Western-North, Greater Accra and Volta.
He indicated that to further address the infrastructural deficit of the health sector, the government has secured funding to implement several projects in 2020 one of them is the sod-cutting ceremony to herald its commencement of the new eastern regional hospital.
He opined that there will be the construction of 12 new hospitals in Jumapo, Kwabeng, Nkwatia, Adukrom, Achease, Suame, Drobonso, Sabronom, Manso – Nkwanta, among others.
He added that the government has started the construction of nine comprehensive infectious disease centres in the country which started to fight Covid-19.
Source: TheBBCghana .Com
