A 50-bed capacity Mother and Care hospital project has been handed over to the Agusi community, a suburb of Sumbrungu in the Bolgatanga Municipality of the Upper East Region.
The project, fitted with the state-of-the-art medical equipment, was constructed by an international non-governmental organisation, Engage Now Africa, with funding support from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Speaking at the handover ceremony at Agusi over the weekend, the Founder of Engage Now Africa, Dr Lynette Gay, said the construction of the hospital was a fulfillment of the organisation’s corporate social responsibility of giving back to the society.
She said the NGO had been operating in the region, precisely the Bolgatanga Municipality for the past 15 years, and was familiar with the dire challenges bedevilling the folk in some rural communities, especially in the area of health.
She further indicated that the organisation and its development partners had equally undertaken impactful infrastructure projects; namely water, education, and so forth, targeted at supporting Ghana’s government tackle the deficit in those areas of national life.
According to Dr Gay, the issue of maternal and child health was dear to her heart, and hoped the facility would be put to good use so that the people lived healthy and prosperous lives, as they went about their daily activities.
Saving lives by supporting maternal and healthcare, strengthening families and communities, she stressed, was a major priority of the not-for-profit making organisation, and it had an avowed commitment to helping underserved communities in that direction.
“We don’t care about our name being on the plaque. We want to do the Lord’s will by extending health service to the people.
“It is a big privilege to be with the people here, and we will continue to give them comfort and support”, she pledged.
The Upper East Regional Minister, Dr Hafiz Bin Salih, in his address at the handover ceremony, stated that the project marked a significant milestone, not only in the life of the church but in the lives of “countless” mothers, children and families who would find hope, healing, and compassion within the walls of the hospital.
Emphasising the monumental impact the facility would bring on the lives of the people in the Sumbrungu-Agusi and the Bolgatanga Municipality at large, he said the gesture was a testament to the power of collaboration between state and non-state actors.
The edifice, Dr Bin Salih noted, was a symbol of hope, progress and a brighter future for the Upper East, particularly the Sumbrungu community and its environs.
“Maternal and child health remains one of the most pressing issues in the country’s health care delivery system, as expectant mothers and young children still face considerable risks due to inadequate health care services.
“Therefore, any effort towards improving maternal health should be the priority of every community as it is crucial to achieving several Sustainable Development Goals such as goal 1, 3, 4, 5, and 10”, the Minister noted.
The Regional Health Director, Dr Samuel Boakye-Boateng, expressed gratitude to the Engage Now Africa for the kind support, promising the facility would be used for its intended purposes, so as to scale up the healthcare delivery system in the region