KOICA hands over blocks to Keta Midwifery School
The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) has constructed a new block for the Keta Nursing and Midwifery Training School as part of efforts to improve maternal and child health care in the country.
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The block, built at a cost of $1 million, houses lecture halls, a library, an administration block, an auditorium and an apartment to accommodate staff.
Agreement
The construction formed part of the Improving Maternal and Child Healthcare (IMCH) $6 million grant agreement KOICA signed in 2013 with the Ministry of Health to improve maternal and child care in the Volta Region.
Other components of the project include building the capacity of maternal and child health caregivers and the provision of medical equipment to enhance maternal and child health care.
Handing over
Construction of the beautiful edifice which started two years ago was handed over to the school for use at a short ceremony in Keta last Tuesday.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Korean Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Sungsoo Kim, said the project was not only important for the Ghana-Korea bilateral and diplomatic relations but also significant for the training of midwives for the country.
According to him, the provision of the structures and facilities for training of midwives and nurses would be meaningless if its functional usage was not translated to improve healthcare outcomes for the people of Keta and other parts of the region.
‘Let me appeal to the managers of the healthcare delivery system in the Volta Region to take advantage of interventions such as this to improve health service delivery and outcomes,” he said.
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He expressed concern over the high rate of teenage pregnancy in the region and urged the regional health directorate, the Minister of Health and traditional leaders to find solutions to the menace.
‘I have noted with concern, the Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (GDHS) report of 2014 which indicated that the region’s teenage pregnancy rate is 22.1 percent, the highest in the country and I’m deeply concerned about that because teenage pregnancy has many negative implications and consequences physiologically, socio-economically and in other spheres of human life,” Mr Kim said.
Skilled personnel
The Country Director of KOICA Ghana, Mr Yukyum Kim, who explained the segments of the IMCH project, indicated that the scope was designed to primarily increase skilled personnel in birth attendance, including community health nurses and midwives to reduce maternal and child mortality.
‘This is an important investment to the health sector in Ghana,” he said.
Principal
The Principal of the school, Madam Charity Kartey, said it was a joy to have such a facility.
The school, she said, currently had a population of 561 students.
Madam Kartey appealed to the Ministry of Health and the Nursing and Midwifery Council to increase the quota of admission of the school to train more personnel to achieve the objective of reducing maternal mortality in line with sustainable development goal (SDG) three.
She also appealed for the construction of hostels to accommodate the students.
The Municipal Chief Executive for Keta, Mr Seth Yormewu, stated that midwives were important healthcare providers in the country and that the school would serve as a facility to train skilled and professional midwives for the country.