By Prince Acquah
Saltpond, June 30, GNA – The Mfantseman-Saltpond Development Alliance (MSDA) has commissioned a 50,000-litre automated water supply system for the Saltpond Municipal Hospital, ending decades of water challenges that hampered quality healthcare delivery at the facility.
As the main referral centre for the Mfantseman Municipality, serving more than 125,000 residents, the hospital had been struggling with persistent water shortages, sometimes forcing it to turn away patients.
At the peak of the crisis in 2024 and 2025, patients were compelled to bring their own water to the hospital, while others were referred to alternative facilities.
The situation also placed a heavy financial burden on the hospital, which spent more than GH¢4,000 weekly on water supply.
The new system, operational since October 2025, has brought significant relief to both hospital authorities and patients.
The project, executed as a legacy initiative of MSDA’s inaugural homecoming festival, was officially commissioned during the launch of the second homecoming celebration.
Mr Ernest De-Graft Egyir, Founder of the Alliance, said the intervention marked the beginning of a sustained effort to transform the municipality, announcing plans for additional development projects.
“Water is life. In a healthcare facility, water is indispensable. This project will serve generations to come and demonstrates that when citizens unite behind a common purpose, extraordinary things become possible,” he said.
He announced that the Alliance intended to construct modern public toilets to improve sanitation, develop a recreational centre to support youth development and sports, build hostel accommodation for health workers and patients’ relatives, and renovate the hospital’s washrooms.
Mr Egyir stressed that the annual homecoming celebration was designed as a platform for driving transformational development and improving livelihoods, urging citizens to actively contribute to local development efforts.
He noted that this year’s homecoming would coincide with the Saltpond Odumase Festival from August 22 to enhance participation and accelerate development.
The celebration will be held on the theme: “Building Saltpond Together: From Homecoming to Sustainable Development.”
Dr John Moses Wereku, Medical Superintendent of the Saltpond Municipal Hospital, expressed appreciation for the project, describing it as the end of a difficult era.
He recalled how the hospital had to spend large sums on water during disease outbreaks, including cholera, which affected parts of the region, noting that such funds could have been invested in medicines and other essential supplies.
Such funds, he indicated, could have gone into procuring medication and other necessities for patients.
“This project has not only given us water, it has given us life and hope,” he rejoiced.
Dr Wereku, however, highlighted critical infrastructure challenges facing the facility, including cracked walls, leaking roofs and broken floors, which pose safety risks.
He added that key medical equipment had become obsolete, including an anaesthetic machine that had been out of service for about 10 years.
He appealed for support to complete an emergency centre, upgrade the electrical system and provide the hospital with a new official vehicle.
In a speech read on her behalf, Madam Gifty Ankrah, the Mfantseman Municipal Director of Health Services, underscored the importance of reliable water supply in healthcare delivery.
She expressed optimism that the project would improve environmental sanitation, maternal care, surgical procedures and infection prevention at the facility.
Nana Gyan Akwanda VII, Chief of the Twifo Division of Saltpond, recounted the longstanding water challenges at the hospital and commended the MSDA for its intervention.
He urged other citizens to emulate the Alliance’s example to accelerate development in Saltpond.
GNA
Edited by Alice Tettey/Lydia Kukua Asamoah
Reporter: Prince Acquah
E-mail: [email protected]