Minority blocks €38m loan to construct five hospitals

The Minority in Parliament has obstructed a €38 million facility to build five district hospitals in the country.

This comes after the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, halted the motion after the Second Deputy Speaker, Andrew Asaimah, put the question to a vote.

According to the Tamale North MP, parliament lacks the necessary number of members to make a decision on the facility following a ruling by the Supreme Court that defined quorum for such issues.

On 15 March 2022, Deputy Finance Minister, Dr John Ampontuah Kumah, filed a rescission motion requesting that the House rescind its earlier decision on the approval granted for the hospital construction.

Messrs MZ Liberec was to carry out the original project, which was approved on Saturday, 7 November 2020.

However, in July 2021, the said contractor backed out of the project, rendering the suppliers’ credit invalid and resulting in the project’s termination.

In withdrawing the motion, Dr John Kumah claimed that the main contractor failed to provide performance security and an advance payment guarantee for the project.

To ensure the execution of the projects for the benefit of communities in the catchment areas, the government of Ghana entered into another agreement with Deutsche Bank for a credit facility amounting to €38, 928, 898 to finance the project.

BACKGROUND

The increasing rate of population growth across the country has exerted enormous pressure on the existing health facilities, stretching them beyond their operational limits, thereby increasing outpatient visits to the various hospitals in all the regions of Ghana. However, programmes to address health infrastructure development, on the other hand, have not kept pace with the growing demand for health services due to the increasing rate of population growth in the country.

In a bid to address the challenges, the Akufo-Addo led government agreed to finance the construction and equipping of three (3) 40-Bed District Hospitals at Ayensuano, Effiduase and Offinso, and the completion and equipping of theOld Tafo Maternity and Kumasi South Maternity Blocks.