Parliament approves €56.15m for Obuasi, Anyinam hospital

Parliament has approved a loan agreement of €56.15 million between the Government of Ghana and the Deutsche Bank AG and TMF Global Services (UK) Limited to finance the construction of trauma hospitals in Obuasi and Anyinam.

The facility would also cater for an Accident and Emergency Centre at Enyiresi Hospital and the rehabilitation of Obuasi Health Centre.

The project, expected to be completed in three years, would be undertaken by Universal Hospitals Groups Limited under an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract with the Government of Ghana.

The terms and condition of the loan include the facility amount of €56,153,500, project cost of €55,000,000, an Upfront fee of €825,000, that is 1.5 percent flat of facility; an Agency fee of €178,500, Legal fee of €150,000, tenure period of 10 years, repayment period of 8 years, grace period of two years and an interest rate of 7.5 percent per annum.

Chairman of the Finance Committee, Dr Mark Assibey-Yeboah, said the object of the loan is to finance the construction of the required infrastructure and the provision of medical equipment and ancillary services to ensure that the beneficiary hospitals are fully operational and befitting their status.

He said the project would provide an enabling condition for its workers and attract the needed healthcare professionals to the facilities.

Dr Assibey-Yeboah said the project is intended to provide a modern health infrastructure to the people and enhanced healthcare delivery.

The project he explained forms part of measures being made by government to provide universal healthcare delivery and it is in line with its vision under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 3).

He said the Obuasi and Anyinam Trauma hospitals to be constructed would have the following features – Accident and Emergency Department, Main theatre, Imaging area, Pharmacy unit, laboratory, Administration block, Wards, Out Patient Department (OPD), Public Health Department, Physiotherapy Department, Support facilities, Pathology and Maternity among others.

Dr Assibey-Yeboah said Obuasi in the Ashanti Region and Anyinam in the Eastern Region do not have any major government hospital.

He said the existing Obuasi Health Centre is presently ill-equipped and inadequate to meet the health needs of the burgeoning population.

Also, the Enyiresi Hospital does not have a modern Accident and Emergency Centre even though it is strategically located along the Accra-Kumasi highway.

He said the project is thus intended to provide the required infrastructure, medical equipment, ancillary facilities and services to ensure that the beneficiary hospitals are fully operational and befitting the status of modern hospitals with emphasis on trauma.

Mrs Abena Osei-Asare, Deputy Minister of Finance, said the location of Anyinam and Enyiresi which is halfway between Accra and Kumasi would ensure that travelers and people within the catchment area would have access to good healthcare infrastructure.

She said the addition of the Trauma Centre would ensure that in case of any unfortunate accident, the victims would have access to professional healthcare in good time.

She lauded President Akufo-Addo administration for bringing the project into fruition, saying the health and safety of the people are dear to the government.

Mrs Osei-Asare said the project was originally launched by the Kufuor-led administration in late 2008 but was abandoned by the NDC government.

She said the people of Anyinam, Enyiresi and other surrounding towns are very delighted and grateful to President Nana Akufo-Addo for the immense healthcare and other socio-economic benefits to be derived from these projects.

Mr Governs Kwame Agbodza, Member of Parliament (MP) for Adaklu, said the two projects are in line with the expectations of a district hospital but the only difference is that the two are trauma hospitals with 12-bed triage unit strategically located along some major highways.

He said under the current agreement government has already gone to borrow the money and then selected a local EPC contractor to undertake the contract.

He said though the project is being undertaken by a local contractor, the legislature must not shirk its responsibility to provide an oversight of the work.