By Godfred Aaneamenga Polkuu
Bolgatanga, Sept. 29, GNA – Mr Donatus Akamugri Atanga, the Upper East Regional Minister, has appealed to the World Health Organization (WHO) to give the region special consideration in health interventions citing its high vulnerability, limited employment opportunities and border status.
He said the region faced unique challenges that placed additional pressure on its health system, including influx of people from neighbouring countries seeking healthcare.
Mr Atanga made the appeal when Dr Fiona Braka, the WHO Country Director to Ghana, called on him as part of efforts to understand the region’s healthcare needs and strengthen collaboration with the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and government.
The Minister said limited employment opportunities had made a significant proportion of the population vulnerable, while chronic conditions such as diabetes and kidney diseases continued to impose financial burdens on families.
“Upper East Region is one of the regions that we can be thinking in terms of vulnerability. The ability of the people of this region to access health is limited because of the lack of employment,” he said.
He noted that the region’s border with Burkina Faso and Togo further complicated its healthcare needs, as people fleeing insecurity and other challenges in neighbouring countries sometimes sought refuge and healthcare in the Upper East.
“For us, we are dealing with Ghanaians and the influx of people who sometimes, out of unfortunate incidents in their countries, have to cross here,” the Minister said.
Mr Atanga said the situation placed additional pressure on health facilities and called for increased support to enable the region to provide adequate services to all who needed them.
He expressed appreciation to the WHO for its collaboration with the government and commended the GHS in the region for being responsive to the needs of the people.
“We are more than glad when we hear that the World Health Organization is helping government or partnering government in that direction. So, we will ask that they do more for us,” he said.
Mr Atanga further highlighted shortages of health personnel in the region, particularly the unfavourable patient-to-doctor and patient-to-nurse ratios.
According to him, expanding tertiary education and health training institutions in the region could help produce health professionals familiar with the local environment and more likely to remain and serve.
“When people are trained here and they are acclimatized to the conditions here, the likelihood of them refusing to stay back here will be a bit lower,” he said.
The Minister assured the WHO of the Regional Coordinating Council’s commitment to working with development partners and other stakeholders to strengthen healthcare delivery.
He said the region was particularly grateful that the WHO had recognized its unique circumstances and urged the organization to translate that understanding into targeted support for the region.
Dr Braka commended the regional leadership for its commitment to improving healthcare delivery and pledged continued support for the successful implementation of the government’s Free Primary Health Care (FPHC) initiative.
She noted that the region’s location, sharing borders with Burkina Faso and Togo, presented unique challenges and opportunities for healthcare delivery, particularly in the areas of disease surveillance and cross-border collaboration.
“We are keen to understand the context. We appreciate that all regions are different, there are unique challenges that we may be facing and unique ways of delivery of services. As a region, you are unique. I have seen the uniqueness already,” Dr Braka said.
She said the WHO was particularly interested in understanding how healthcare initiatives, including the FPHC initiative, would be implemented within the specific context of the region.
“We are delighted to see that the Free Primary Health Care initiative has been launched. We are in the early stages, so I am sure it will be a good appreciation to see how we are planning to roll it out,” the WHO Country Director said.
“On behalf of the World Health Organization, I want to thank you for your leadership, your support to the health sector, and to assure you that the World Health Organization is a committed partner, not just at the national level, but even down to the regional and community levels,” Dr Braka told the Minister.
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali/Kenneth Odeng Adade
Reporter: Godfred Aaneamenga Polkuu
Reporter’s email: [email protected]