Claims by Ghana’s Vice President Dr. Mahamud Bawumia that the Ofankor Hospital was constructed at a cost of 5.7 million Ghana cedis has been corroborated by the contractor. The facility has an administration block, OPD, adjunct clinical services unit, maternity block, operations and gynecology 50KVA standby generator, 19-street lighting, a wall and security post as well as a 32,000 liters water storage system. Barima Kwaku Ameyaw, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Georgeland Ventures Limited, contractors of the facility confirmed to the media in Accra that the total cost of the facility stood at 5.76 million Ghana Cedis or the equivalent of 1.3 million dollars as indicated by the Vice President. The facility which was constructed two years ago by the government with funding from the African Development Bank has been abandoned. The Health Minister Kwaku Agyeman-Manu is reported to have said that there are still several things to be completed at the facility before it is opened to the public. The contractor indicated that it was regrettable that such a facility is not being put to use to serve the health needs of the thousands of residents at Ofankor and its environs. Due to the general challenges with limited health facilities, the situation is putting pressure on the Amasaman hospital. Barima Kwaku Ameyaw is therefore appealing to the Health Minister and the vice president to help equip the hospital to enable it to commence operations to serve the people of the area. Dr Bawumia while speaking at the ‘Value for Money’ conference in Accra, revealed that “at a recent meeting of the Economic Management Team (EMT), it emerged that Ghana constructs 60-80 bed district hospitals for $25 million and I said “Ebeii!” He wondered how the African Development Bank could construct a 150-bed hospital in Accra for about GH¢5.76 million or $1.3 million without equipment, saying “even when they decide to equip the said hospital for some $1 million, the total cost cannot get to more than $ 3 million. “So how come we are building district hospitals for $25 million, a figure which even excludes the tax exemptions granted on equipment imported for the hospitals?” he asked rhetorically. Source: 3news.com | Ghana]]>
