By Evans Worlanyo Ameamu, GNA
Tengekope (V/R), Sept. 2, GNA- Residents of Tengekope, a farming community in the Keta Municipality of the Volta Region, have joyfully welcomed the construction of a new Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHIPS) compound in the area.
They described the structure as being long-awaited for, and which would bring healthcare closer to their doorstep and save lives,
Mr Etsevi Adzidobo, a resident of the area, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said the facility, when fully completed and commissioned, would end the perennial challenge of travelling long distances to seek medical attention at health facilities in Keta, Anlo-Afiadenyigba and other neighbouring towns.
“The absence of a health facility in our community has over the years, forced many residents, particularly pregnant women, the aged and children, to endure stressful and sometimes life-threatening journeys in search of medical care, a situation which claimed lives in cases of emergency,” he said.
He also lamented the deplorable state of the road network linking Tengekope to the various health centres.
“The poor roads had compounded the difficulty of accessing healthcare, especially during emergencies and in the rainy season when the roads become nearly impassable, which needed urgent attention,” Mr Adzidobo said.
Mr Adzidobo complained about the high cost of transportation to and from the health facilities over the years, and said that many residents, particularly those in the lower-income bracket, often struggled to raise the needed fares, a situation that sometimes led to delays in accessing timely medical care.
He said Let me use this opportunity to commend the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Keta, Mr Wisdom Seade, and our Member of Parliament Mr Kwame Dzudzorli Gakpey, as well as President John Dramani Mahama’s government, for the initiative which demonstrated commitment to bringing quality healthcare to underserved rural communities.”
Madam Mary Yayra Amemasor, a mother of three, expressed the hope that the completion of the facility would not only reduce maternal and infant mortality in the area but also improve the general health outcomes of residents who had for years relied on herbal remedies and self-medication due to the difficulty of accessing formal healthcare.
Checks by the GNA at the project site indicated that the facility is about 90 to 95 per cent complete, with electrification works and other finishing touches ongoing to bring the building up to standard for healthcare delivery.
The residents, while expressing gratitude for the project, urged the contractors handling the construction to speed up with work on the remaining components to ensure the facility is completed and commissioned within the stipulated time frame to save the community from further hardship in accessing healthcare.
Meanwhile, a visit by the GNA to other ongoing government projects in the Municipality observed significant progress at the Tsiame SHS, Atiase SHS, Abor SHS, Keta State school, and others where ultra-modern classroom blocks, bungalows for staff, dining halls, among other infrastructure, were under construction.
The projects, when completed, are expected to significantly improve the teaching and learning environment in the affected schools, as well as boost the living conditions of teaching staff posted to the areas.
Other residents who spoke to the GNA on the various projects expressed optimism that the pace of development being witnessed in the Municipality, if sustained, would go a long way to improve the socio-economic wellbeing of the people in the Keta Municipality and the Volta Region as a whole.
GNA
Edited by Maxwell Awumah/Benjamin Mensah