The Minister for Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, has revealed that the government needs approximately GHS140 million to fully operationalize the Bokoro Agenda 111 Hospital in the Ahanta West Municipality of the Western Region.
This comes despite the facility being commissioned three months ago.
During a tour of the hospital on Monday, March 10, the Minister noted that only 10% of the required medical equipment had been installed, making the facility unfit for operation. He emphasized that the incomplete installations have left the hospital non-functional since its commissioning.
The hospital was officially inaugurated by former President Nana Akufo-Addo just two days before the December general elections.
However, Mr. Akandoh revealed that at the time of its commissioning, the facility was nowhere near ready to serve the public.
He emphasized that the government must allocate the required funds to complete the installation of essential medical equipment and make the hospital fully operational.
The additional expenses, he noted, are necessary to ensure that the facility can deliver quality healthcare services to the people.
“Completing the project is one thing, and paying for the project to become a property of the state is also another thing. As we speak, we need to cough not less than $9 million for this particular project alone.
“When we talk about a hospital being in operation, it is not just the brick and mortar that is why I was requesting to see certain departments in the places. You cannot commission a project without hospital equipment being installed,” he stated.