Govt moves to address University of Ghana Medical Centre impasse
The government has set up a mechanism to address all outstanding issues relating to the determination of the ownership and management of the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC).
At a meeting at the Flagstaff House last Tuesday, January 16, 2018, representatives of the University of Ghana, the Ministry of Health (MoH) and the Ministry of Education reaffirmed their commitment to the full and effective implementation of the UGMC project.
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The facility has not been operational since its completion in November 2016, and this has been attributed to disagreements over the legitimate manager of the facility – whether it should be managed by the MoH or the University of Ghana.
Government committed
The government said it remained committed to the vision of the project, for which it secured a loan of $217 million.
It assured the university community and the public of the successful completion and operation of the facility,in line with the vision of the project.
In a joint communique issued after the meeting, the three bodies reiterated the need to address issues concerning the ownership and management of the centre.
Background
In 2012, the government signed a contract with Messrs Engineering and Development Consultant (EDC) of Israel to build the first phase of the facility and hand it over to the university.
The university designated 400 acres of land for the entire project.
However, another source claimed that an agreement was subsequently signed between the Ministry of Health and the University of Ghana in 2015 which gave ownership of the $217-million facility to the university.
The first phase of the project was inaugurated by former President John Mahama on January 6, 2017.
