UNICEF worried about maternal deaths in Upper West Region

Wa, July 22, GNA - UNICEF say it was worried about maternal deaths recorded in the Upper West Region of Ghana in spite of some successes chalked in the overall health sector.

Madam Shaya Ibrahim Asuidua, a UNICEF Coordinator, who made this known on Tuesday, said maternal and child care was of great concern to the organisation and therefore called on district assemblies and other stakeholders to support the regional health directorates to overcome challenges. Madam Asuidua was interacting with the Upper West Regional Minister Mr Mahmud Khalid at his office with some UN officials currently touring some districts in the region. She called for the formation of Child Protection Committees in communities to reduce child rights abuses and promote girl-child education. Madam Asuidua said UNICEF was supporting the health sector in the region with the provision of Community based Health Planning and services (CHPS) compounds aimed at sustaining quality healthcare services for the people.

Mr Mammah Tenii, Project Officer at the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA), announced that his organisation had built a training centre in Tamale to train doctors, midwives and nurses to handle fistula

cases in the northern regions. He said fistula is a challenge in the Upper West, Upper East and Northern

regions but gave the assurance that about 80 per cent of such cases could be

managed through surgical treatment. Mr Khalid was not happy that doctors refuse to accept postings to the

region, a situation, he said, had not helped the provision of quality healthcare

delivery to the people. He appealed to the Ghana Health Service and the Ministry of Health to help

provide doctors for the region to reduce the burden on the few doctors that

were manning health facilities. On agriculture, he said, government had provided improved seeds,

fertilizers and insecticides to farmers under the Block Farming Programme

initiated by the government to increase food production this year. He said more farmers have benefited from a 920 hectare of land cultivated

for maize production under the Programme. Mr Khalid was optimistic that there would be a bumper harvest of maize in

the region if the rains continued up to September this year, but gave his doubts

about rice, which planting he said was done late. He appealed to the organisations under the UN to support the government

to provide small scale irrigations facilities for farmers in the region to undertake

dry season gardening to enhance their livelihoods and stem migration. He said UN organisations providing food assistance to schools and health

facilities should stop importing food items and rather relied on local sources to

help farmers.