Jubilant trainee Nurses/Midwives receive alerts of ‘alawa’

President Akufo-Addo has formally launched the restoration of the Nurses and midwives trainee allowance in the Brong Ahafo region.

According to President Akufo-Addo, government has allocated an amount of GH? 232 million as payment for the beneficiaries for the 2017/2018 academic year.

“For the 2017/2018 academic year, effective September 2017, Fifty-Eight Thousand health trainees comprising nurses and midwives will be paid their allowance of Four Hundred Ghana Cedis(GHC400.00) per person for each of the ten months for the academic year…” he said in an address at the launch Tuesday, October 10, 2017.

He revealed that the e-zwich payment system will be used to effect the payments to the various beneficiaries, as it will ensure convenience, prompt payment and accountability.

The Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyemang Manu paraded some trainee nurses who showered praises on the President for the gesture extended to them under his regime.

The beneficiaries as well testified receiving the alert of their allowances in their various accounts during the launch of the Restoration of the allowance earlier today.

Some critics especially members of the opposition NDC have suggested that the government will not be able to sustain the move, but the President has intimated that Ghana’s budget is enough to make this provision sustainable.

The move is in fulfillment of a campaign promise made by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in 2016 to both health and teacher trainee institutions across the country.

According to government, the cost of the restoration is adequately captured in the 2017 budget presented in March 2017.

The allowances, which were scrapped by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government, was met with strong resistance from the teacher trainees, and nursing trainees who complained bitterly about the difficulties it had brought upon them.

But prior to the 2016 elections, the then opposition NPP assured students of the various teacher and nursing training institutions of the party’s commitment to bring back the allowances, to ensure they had smooth training to serve the country.