File photo of some Agenda 111 hospitals
The Ministry of Health has responded to the immediate past Minister of Finance, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, over claims regarding the completion status of three district hospitals under the Agenda 111 project.
The ministry, in a press statement signed by its Head of Public Relations, Isaac Ofei Baah, denied these claims and urged the public to disregard them.
According to the ministry, a recent inspection of the Trede and Kokoben hospital sites revealed that critical medical equipment, including imaging systems, medical gas systems, and laboratory and theatre equipment, had not been installed.
The ministry further asserted that the hospitals had not been handed over to the Ghana Health Service for operational use.
“During the visit, it was discovered that there was no medical gas system, imaging equipment, mortuary equipment, solid waste management, ophthalmology and medical furniture, dental equipment, ENT equipment, lab equipment, theatre equipment, etc. Again, the ministry brings to the attention of the general public the following:
“1. The previous government spent $400 million on the Agenda 111 project.
“2. Out of the 111 district hospitals committed to construction, none is currently operational.
“3. The estimated cost to complete the project now stands at $1.589 billion.
“4. Although Trede, Kokoben, and Ahanta hospitals were commissioned by former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the project is still under construction with an overall completion rate of 95%,” part of the statement said.
The statement continued, “5. No medical equipment has been installed, and some laboratory facilities are still under construction.
“6. The hospitals have not been handed over to the Ghana Health Service for operation.
“7. The estimated cost to make Trede, Kokoben and Ahantan facilities operational is $8.03 million each. Per the above stated facts, the Ministry emphasizes that the assertion by the former Finance Minister, Hon. Dr. Amin Adams, that these hospitals were completed and equipped before commissioning, is inaccurate and a calculated attempt to mislead the general public.”
In a press conference held as part of the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) “True State of the Nation Address,” Dr. Adam asserted that before the previous government left office, three hospitals were successfully completed, equipped, and commissioned.
These, he stated, include the Atwima Kwanwoma Municipal Hospital at Trede, the Oforikrom Municipal Hospital at Kokoben, and the Ahanta West Municipal Hospital at Bokro.
Dr. Adam stated that a dedicated funding source of $1.3 billion had been secured to complete all remaining Agenda 111 hospital projects.
He also refuted claims made by the current administration that only one hospital had been built.
He explained that the funding was sourced from the direct government of Ghana budgetary allocation and the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) from oil revenues.
AM/AE
Meanwhile, watch this Ghana Month special edition of People and Places as we hear the story of how the head of Kwame Nkrumah’s bronze statue was returned after 43 years, below: