This is despite the initial assurance that a concrete announcement on the resolution of the impasse between the University and the Ministry of Health would be made by the end of last week.

[contextly_sidebar id=”zpsK2ssQPczSfI2Ot4EcySKxXOm3Rbp7″]The government has now said it is finalizing a framework on the management module for the running of the Medical Center.

This latest assurance, however did not come with any timelines.

A Deputy Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, early on told Citi News the tussle between the University of Ghana and the Ministry of Health had ended, and that the two parties had agreed on a plan to end the impasse.

But he now says the two sub-committees involved in the matter were unable to beat their deadlines last week.

“As late as Friday, we were still trying to conclude the framework for the next line of action. We, however, were not able to complete every little item on that list,” Mr. Oppong Nkrumah said to Citi News.

According to him, there were also legal considerations to be taken into account concerning when the contractor is supposed to hand over the project.

“… But for now, the bigger challenge is: how do we get this into use as soon as possible, and that is the other part with the University of Ghana itself. The subcommittees are almost done with their work. Once they complete a few outstanding issues and they escalate, and we have the sign-off, we would let the nation know… The timeline we were hoping to meet unfortunately we couldn’t meet it,” he said.

Background

The UG Medical Centre, which had its first phase completed was ready to commence operations after being inaugurated by former President John Mahama in after completion in November 2016.

The facility has been idle since the commissioning of its first phase in January 2017, because authorities of the University are at odds with the Health Ministry on who should manage the facility.

Whereas the University believes processes leading to the construction of the facility gives it a direct oversight role of the Medical Centre, the current Ministry of Health under the Akufo-Addo government thinks otherwise.

A Deputy Minister of Health, Kingsley Aboagye Gyedu, had earlier said government currently needed about $6 million to make the facility operational, and an additional $50 million to complete the phase two of the project.

In 2012, the government signed a contract with Messrs. Engineering and Development Consultant (EDC) of Israel to build the first phase of the facility.

The University of Legon designated 400 acres of land for the entire project.

About 800 personnel were said to be needed to get the facility fully operational.

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By: Caleb Kudah & Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post UG, MoH miss Medical Centre settlement deadline appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Mr. Oppong Nkrumah revealed that, the two parties, have now agreed on a road-map, which will be announced later this week.

“That standoff [between the University of Ghana and the Ministry of Health], as I speak to you, is being resolved. Between the University and the Health Ministry, they have come to an agreement on a new management approach.”

The deputy minister added that, “before the end of this week, there will be an announcement on the way forward.”

Mr. Oppong Nkrumah stressed the need for rationalization process on not only the UG Medical Centre, but other medical facilities at various stages of completion that have been found to be lying idle or abandoned for various reasons.

He said the government was looking at the administrative coordination processes that went into these medical projects by different agencies.

“There is the bigger question of how we are rationalizing what various government agencies are doing. Even if you go beyond this specific hospitals matter, you find instances where multiple agencies are trying to do the same thing over and over again, where if the resources were put together and routed through a single agency, then you could have completion in some of them and get the results that you are looking for.”

But in the case of the University of Ghana Medical Centre, Mr. Oppong Nkrumah again assured that, “before the end of this week, they should come to a completion of that rationalization process, and be able to tell the nation, so it is going somewhere and once they are done, I am hopeful that they will tell all of us where they are.”

Background

The UG Medical Centre, which has its first phase completed and ready to commence operations, was inaugurated by former President John Mahama in 2016.

The facility has been idle since the commissioning of its first phase in January 2017, because authorities of the University are at odds with the Health Ministry on who should manage the facility.

Whereas the University believes processes leading to the construction of the facility gives it a direct oversight role of the Medical Centre, the current Ministry of Health under the Akufo-Addo government thinks otherwise.

A Deputy Minister of Health, Kingsley Aboagye Gyedu, had earlier said government currently needs about $6 million to make the facility operational, and an additional $50 million to complete the phase two of the project.

Fight for UG Medical centre

The immediate past Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Professor Ernest Aryeetey, has also charged the current university administration to fight to ensure that they have overall control of the Medical Centre.

“The University needs to stand up and fight for what is rightfully its property,” he noted in a Citi News interview.

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post UG, MoH arrive at settlement on Medical Centre – Oppong Nkrumah appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

There is a current stand-off  between the University of Ghana and the Ministry of Health over who has the mandate to manage the $217 million health facility.

Whereas the University is of the view that it has the sole right to manage the facility, the Ministry of Health thinks otherwise.

[contextly_sidebar id=”0DoNE80QtuVavbfPiXLjjJMSKmn5YG3W”]These and many other reasons including the Ministry of Health’s claim that an amount of $6 million is needed to make the facility operational, have contributed in making the hospital dormant, despite it having ultra-modern facilities installed in it.

Prof. Aryeetey encouraged the University not to stand up and rightfully claim ownership of the hospital.

“The University needs to stand up and fight for what is rightfully its property,” he added in a Citi News interview.

Health Ministry can’t claim ownership of Medical Centre

Prof. Ernest Aryeetey in the interview further challenged the Ministry of Health to provide evidence, indicating that they must take ownership of the University’s Medical Center.

Prof. Aryeetey insisted that, the hospital was never built for the Ministry, and charged the University to rise up and fight for its property.

“It was never built for the Ministry of Health, and I’m challenging the Ministry of Health or anybody with any information that the hospital was built for the Ministry of Health to come out and give us the evidence. The hospital is at Legon because Legon asked for it.”

Health Ministry peddling ‘lies’ about UG Medical Centre

The former Vice Chancellor also took on the Deputy Minister of Health, Kingsley Aboagye Gyedu, who had alleged that Prof. Aryeetey and two other persons – former Deputy Health Minister Rojo Mettle Nunoo, and Prof. Aaron Nii Lante Lawson, have registered the University of Ghana Medical Center in their names, saying Mr. Gyedu was throwing dust into the eyes of the public.

“Lying to the people of Ghana that the company was registered in my name is unacceptable, it’s completely unacceptable.  It is a lie and he knows it. His Minister made an earlier lie and the fact that they continue with this lie is what annoys me. So you have a deputy minister and a minister of health lying about a public facility, lying about an individual or individuals and yet they perpetuate it. They go all with it hoping to create a bad name for me,” he noted.

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post Fight for UG Medical centre – Aryeetey urges authorities appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Citi News has reported on a number of health projects undertaken by successive governments which cost the taxpayer nearly several millions of dollars, but have been abandoned.

[contextly_sidebar id=”oQhfbZP7awT4piGDJJoG21KpuICuZ3Ks”]The major ones that have come up for mention are the $217 million University of Ghana Medical Centre, the Bank of  Ghana Hospital, the solar-powered medical centre at the Volo Digital Village in the Volta Region, as well as the GHc320,000 CHPS compound at Teshie which are all not in use.

With the University of Ghana Medical Centre, although the first phase has been completed, there is a tussle between the University of Ghana and the Health Ministry, as to who to manage the facility, with government saying it needs an additional $6 million to make it operational.

With regards to the Bank of Ghana Hospital, the Board is yet to take a decision on what module of management to adopt, although the facility was built in three years and largely completed in 2017.

In the case of the Volo Medical Centre, health professionals are  unwilling to work there due to the lack of staff accommodation as well as the location of the facility.

Speaking to Citi News‘ Parliamentary correspondent, Duke Opoku Mensah on Tuesday, Yieleh Chireh said his Committee will surely enquire from the sector departments the reason why these facilities are not in use.

“I have the duty to invite them to parliament; the committee will work on all these things. The controversies you have heard, the committee would have to call the various heads of departments to appear before the committee to find out what is the real issue,” he said.

He also accused the Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyeman Manu of not being on top of issues within his sector describing him as too “slow.”

“I think the Minister should up his game. There are different institutions maybe constructing this and they all do not come under the Ministry of Health. But I still think that by this time he [Health Minister], should have got grasp of all that is happening in the health sector. And many of the things that are going on there, you cannot blame him alone, but I think that he should have a grasp of what is left and what needs to be done.”

Although Mr. Yieleh Chireh acknowledged that most of the abandoned health facilities were not constructed by the Ministry of Health, he said if the ministry wants to oversee the affairs of the facilities, it should do it in a professional manner devoid of politics.

“The facilities were constructed by quasi-government agencies. The Bank of Ghana doesn’t come directly under the Ministry of Health. The Ports Authority also built one. But whilst that is true, there are many things that this government is slow to take decision on. In the case of the University of Ghana Medical Centre, the facts are there. When you politicize health, then we have a problem. When you want people to think that the edifice everybody has seen is not yet completed and the contractors are no longer on the site, I think it could only be politics,” he added.

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post We’ll summon officials over ‘abandoned’ health facilities – Yieleh Chireh appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The facility, which cost $217 million can among other things boast of 617 beds, ultra-modern medical gadgets for treating complicated medical conditions, and a helipad to airlift emergency cases as well as a medical hotel.

Many months after the completion, the facility is yet to be operational following a tussle between the Ministry of Health and the University of Ghana over who manages the facility.

citifmonline.com visited the facility today [Thursday] January 18, 2018, to ascertain the state of the centre.

Below are some pictures showing the state of the centre:

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Photos by Roberta Edem Abbeyquaye/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post State of $217m UG Medical Centre [Photos] appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The facility has not been operational since its completion in November 2016, however, there are reports of disagreements over the legitimate manager of the facility – whether it should be managed by the Health Ministry or the University of Ghana.

[contextly_sidebar id=”mfmTla9OSvIT7NZAflchsX7e6u7uxY7A”]In 2012, government signed a contract with Messrs Engineering and Development Consultant (EDC) of Israel to build the first phase of the facility, and hand it over to the university.

The university designated 400 acres of land for the entire project.

Sources close to the development told Citi News that, another agreement was subsequently signed between the Ministry of Health and the University of Ghana in 2015, which gave ownership of the $217 million facility to the university.

The phase one of the project was inaugurated by former President, John Dramani Mahama on January 6, 2017, and charged his successor Nana Akufo-Addo to work hard to ensure the facility is made fully operational soon.

However, the facility is wasting away over ten months since its inauguration.

Health Ministry’s contradictory clarification  

Speaking to the issue on the Citi Breakfast Show on Monday, the Head of Communications at the Health Ministry, Robert Cudjoe, gave contradictory responses on why the facility is not functioning.

Whereas he rejected claims of a standoff between the Health Ministry and the University of Ghana, Mr. Cudjoe later alluded to that fact, following intense probe by show host, Bernard Koku Avle.

“That is not part of the reason, I haven’t seen any power struggle, only that we want to streamline the way the management of the hospital will go on,” he said.

But when probed further, Mr. Cudjoe said: “go to Legon and ask whether it [the Medical Centre] has been handed over to the Ministry. Go and ask them. It was handed over to the Ministry or who?”

“There is no power struggle; the Minister just wants to tread cautiously to make sure that all things that need to be put in place could be in place.”

“I don’t think that all the equipment have been fixed now – there are other things that need to be done, but at least, where ever it has gotten to, it can open for public use. And like I said, measures are far advanced to ensure that it’s opened to the public…even if it takes government a full year to get this hospital functional, I don’t think anybody should be worried too much,” Mr. Cudjoe noted.

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

The post UG Medical Centre hasn’t been handed over to us – Health Ministry   appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

In 2012, government signed a contract with Messrs. Engineering and Development Consultant (EDC) of Israel to build the first phase of the facility and hand it over to the university. The university designated 400 acres of land for the entire project.

[contextly_sidebar id=”lQcRM1FdxJOCU3l6k0AU3aWADqrSZSVm”]Sources closely involved with the project revealed to Citi News that, following this contract, another agreement was signed between the Ministry of Health and the University of Ghana in 2015, which gave ownership of the $217 million facility to the university.

Following this agreement, the university established a company, the University of Ghana Medical Center (UGMC) Limited to serve as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) that will oversee the operations of the facility. The institution also went ahead to obtain approval from the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service Commission to recruit staff for the running of the facility.

Some 800 personnel are needed to get the facility fully operational.

But the Ministry of Health in recent times, is laying claims to the facility, leading to uncertainties over who has the responsibility to manage the centre.

Thus, staff recruitment has stalled, and ultramodern medical equipment lie idle as they collect dust.

Phase One of the project was commissioned by then President John Mahama, who charged his successor Nana Akufo-Addo to work hard to ensure the facility is made fully operational.

Discussions are currently ongoing to secure a 48 million dollar to commence the next phase of the project.

The Ministry of Health is yet to comment on these developments.

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By: Marie-Franz Fordjoe/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post $217m UG Medical Centre wasting away over management tussle appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

In an interview with Citi News, Professor Lawson stated that, the facility would be opened to the public in October.

[contextly_sidebar id=”lyY48DVG22W0x6gWehbTH1rvddi9kk17″]Phase One of the project was commissioned by then President Mahama, who charged his successor Nana Akufo-Addo to work hard to ensure the facility is made fully operational.

Phase 2 of the project includes 350 beds, boasts of up to date medical gadgets for treating complicated medical conditions, and a helipad to airlift emergency cases as well as a medical hotel.

The $217 million project was expected to be fully operational once a $48 million parliamentary approval was given.

However, concerns have been raised from some sections of the public that the facility has been abandoned since the new government took over.

Professor Lawson insists the project is till on course, and that the government has shown the willingness to secure the funds necessary to ensure its completion.

“The hospital has not been abandoned. It has never been abandoned and I don’t think it will ever be abandoned. We have engaged the current government and they are keenly interested in soliciting for the 48 million dollar loan for that purpose. For patients to come in, we are looking at sometime in October,” he told Citi News

Professor Lamptey also stated that, they had started receiving online applications from health and non-health professionals for employment at the Medical Centre.

“We received clearance from the Ministry of Finance a few weeks ago so we have advertised. We are doing online applications of various categories of health and non-health posts. The deadline for submission of applications is July 14.”

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By: Edwin Kwakofi & Caleb Kudah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post UG Medical Centre not abandoned, opens in October – CEO appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The $217 million project will be fully operational pending a $48million parliamentary approval.

Speaking at the inauguration, President Mahama charged his successor Nana Akufo-Addo to work hard to ensure the facility is made fully operational soon.

According to him, the facility is first of its kind, and will discourage brain drain among medical practitioners.

Phase 2 of the project, which has 350 beds, boasts of up to date medical gadgets for treating complicated medical conditions, and a helipad to airlift emergency cases as well as a medical hotel.

71 medical personnel have received highly specialized training at Sheba Medical Center in Israel, where funds for the project were sourced.

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By: Caleb Kudah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Mahama inaugurates phase one of UG Medical centre project [Photos] appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.