Complete Afari hospital on schedule - Defence Minister charges contractors
The Minister of Defence, Dominic Nitiwul, has charged contractors working on the military hospital at Afari, near Kumasi, to deliver the facility by the December 15, 2022, timeline.
Mr Nitiwul said the government had played its part by making available the outstanding contract sum to ensure that the project was completed on schedule.
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"In December, I will be here with the Parliamentary select committee on health to commission this project, and nothing must stall it," the minister said yesterday when he visited the project site.
The hospital infrastructure, located in the Atwima Nwabiagye District of the Ashanti Region, is being handled by Euroget De-Invest, an Egyptian investment company.
The Minister, accompanied by the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health and high ranking military officers including the Director-General, Ghana Armed Forces Medical Services, Brig. Gen. Raymond. K. Ewusi, and Commander, Kumasi Military Hospital, Brig. Gen. Prosper Kwame Ayibor, inspected the progress of work on the 500-bed facility as it nears completion and commissioning.
He disclosed that a process to recruit some 2,000 health and auxiliary staff would begin this year in preparation for the start of operations of the hospital.
Mr Nitiwul said given the extent of work covered so far, December was far enough time to complete the remaining aspects.
"I wish to commend you highly for your level of professionalism and urgency to work.
"With what I have seen today, I'm very confident that you will deliver on your mandate," he said.
All of the physical infrastructure, including staff accommodation facilities and medical blocks, have been completed while installation of equipment have advanced.
Team
The team was received and conducted round the project site by the Resident Engineer, Abou Shamaa, along with the Country Director of Euroget, Abraham Dwuma Odoom; the project officer, Tiyuniba Imoro Mahama; the Administrative Manager, Baba Anaba, and General Project Coordinator, Bernard Moro.
Mr Moro told the visiting entourage that engineers were currently working to have a special telephone line for both voice and data.
The 11-member parliamentary team, which was led by its Chairman, Dr Nana Ayew Afriye, and deputy ranking member, Dr Mark Kurt Nawaane, applauded the contractors for work done so far and expressed optimism that challenges associated with the project would be surmounted.
Nana Afriye said much as the committee was highly optimistic, it would visit the site again ahead of the hand over ceremony to be "double sure".
"Now that the outstanding contract sum has been worked out, I'm sure we are good to go," he said.
Background
The Afari Military Hospital will have specialist capacity — in terms of both equipment and clinics — to handle major medical conditions.
It will have 17 specialist clinics, pharmacy units, theatres, laboratories, kitchen, laundry, morgue, among others.
It also has medical waste, sewerage and water treatment plants, a 54-flat staff accommodation, a gas-generating system, a parking lot for more than 700 cars and a helipad.
It has a six-kilometre internal road network and 40-acre landscaping on the 260,000-metre square project area.
