President Nana Akufo-Addo
• President Akufo-Addo wants to make Ghana attractive for medical care
• He said his gov’t will invest more to achieve this target
• President Akufo-Addo cut sod for the Agenda 111 project
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has disclosed that his vision is to make Ghana the destination of excellence for medical care in West Africa.
Akufo-Addo, who was speaking on the grounds for the commencement of the construction of hospitals under the Agenda 111 initiative, said he is committed to ensuring that Ghana leverages on its favourable status to attract patients from other neighbouring countries.
“Beyond the building of these facilities, my vision is to help make Ghana the centre for medical care in West Africa by 2030,” President Akufo-Addo said at the launch in Trede.
“Leveraging on Ghana’s favourable status in the region as the most peaceful country in West Africa, the beacon of democracy on the continent and a land of opportunities. We have to make Ghana an attractive destination for healthcare for our neighbours to patronize,” he said.
According to him the construction of the 101 district hospitals in addition to 10 selected regional and specialized hospitals will aid in Gross Domestic Product [GDP] growth in the long run.
“Several countries benefitted from international travels and this includes GDP growth, improved healthcare infrastructure and foreign direct investments, tourism promotion and courting the brain drain of skilled medical professionals,” the president said at the sod-cutting ceremony for the construction on Tuesday.
“This, we would achieve by investing more in our healthcare infrastructure, mapping our regional health facilities to specialization as well upgrading facilities in our teaching hospitals into a world-class standard,” he added.
According to him, “while we upgrade facilities, we should invest in medical education and training of our health professionals including expanding the use of IT for medical diagnosis and treatment in the Agenda 111 being developed.”
“This network of primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare facilities will form the backbone to make Ghana the leading destination in West Africa,” Akufo-Addo added.