New KATH baby unit n progress

A team from the First Lady’s Office and Multimedia Group has toured the construction site for the new Mother & Baby Unit for Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, spearheaded by First Lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo, to assess the extent of work since its sod-cutting ceremony was held in May 2017.

The tour, conducted by Engineer Stephan Coret of Africa Building Partners, contractor for the Mother and Baby Unit facility, took the team round and showed them the extent of work.

Work on the 1,500m2 Mother & Baby Unit at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital is fast progressing, with the physical structure now nearing lintel stage.

According to Engineer Stephan Coret, his team is working tirelessly to ensure the facility is completed and commissioned on schedule.

The Managing Director of Multi TV, Santokh Singh, who led the Multi-media team, expressed his excitement at extent of work done, considering the tight schedule the contractor is working with.

Kwaku Kwakye, who led the team from the First Lady’s Office, also expressed the first lady’s gratitude to all those who have contributed and supported the project in various ways to ensure its steady progress.

Mrs Akufo-Addo’s-led project for the construction of a maternity ward at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) has so far received positive response from Ghanaians, with the project raising over GH¢6.1m as at May 31, 2017.

The ‘Save A Child, Save A Mother’ project, in addition to the amount raised, has an outstanding amount of cash pledges of GH¢1,489,500 yet to be redeemed by organisations and individuals, according to Deloitte & Touche, following two fundraising events in Accra and Kumasi.

The project has also received in-kind pledges and donations, including several bags of cement, electrical cables, windows, pipes, babies’ cots, hospital beds and incubators.

First Lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo initiated the project in collaboration with the Multimedia Group, following a Joy News’ documentary dubbed ‘Next to Die’ which revealed that about four babies die every day at the hospital due to congestion and its accompanying infections.

The first lady subsequently launched a fundraising drive to construct a facility, which when completed will increase the current facility’s capacity by five times.