Ghana spends $305m of World Bank support on COVID-19 emergency response – Minister
The Minister for Health, Mr Kwaku Agyemang-Manu, says Ghana has spent $305.42 million out of the $430.00 million COVID-19 funding support provided by the World Bank on emergency preparedness.
He said at a press briefing in Accra on Wednesday that the amount used, represented 71.03 per cent of the funds received.
He said the money was used for the procurement of items as part of the nation’s emergency response for the pandemic.
Mr Agyemang-Manu said a total of $37,588,199.99 was used for the procurement of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for health facilities, isolation centres and schools across the country.
A total of $53,063,564.98 was used for the purchase of medical equipment such as oxygen, ventilators, respiratory instruments, suctions devices, sterilizers, among others.
He said a sum of $9,867,339.79 was also used to buy COIVD-19 Infection Prevention Control Commodities such as Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) tools.
Additionally, $2,539,379.51 was used to purchase sanitizers and paper towels while $8,735,273.78 was spent on cleaning materials.
The Minister said $87,731.77 was used to acquire vehicles and $22,328,364.85 used to refurbish and equip COVID-19 treatment and holding centres.
Similarly, $147,483,170.16 was used to acquire vaccines and $95,083.85 spent on consultancy for the Center for Disease Control (CDC).
Mr Agyemang-Manu said $926,384.43 was spent on the transportation and storage of vaccines, $16,181,019.88, on transfers made to implementing partners, $1,874,633.14 to acquire life insurance packages for frontline health workers and $4,649,853.21 on medicines for the management of the disease.
The Health Minister said the Government of Ghana (GoG) also allocated a total of GH¢662,541,104.53 to the management of the pandemic.
He said GH¢114,450,350.00 of the GoG funds was also used to purchase PPEs, GH¢32,663,280.00 to buy medicines, GH¢484,102,490.90 on Infection, Prevention and Control commodities.
An additional GH¢31,324,983.63 was spent on COVID-19 transfers to agencies, meetings, and conferences.
Mr Agyemang-Manu described Ghana’s COVID-19 management as a success despite the huge expenditures made.
“At the time the pandemic struck, we did not have equipment and structures in place to respond to the emergency, most of the things, things were done on urgent basis,” he said.
He commended President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for his direct involvement in the management of the pandemic by ensuring that initiatives to contain the virus and avert deaths were implemented on time.
The Health Minister said the pandemic had impacted the country’s economy negatively, leading to low productivity, low cash flow and high trade charges.
He appealed to Ghanaians to visit the vaccination centres and get inoculated, saying “COVID-19 has come to stay, it will not leave, get vaccinated to help us ease restrictions to revive the economy,” he said.
The Minister said as of February 7, a total of 11,835,359 COVID-19 doses had been administered with at least 8,325,791 persons receiving a dose.
Presently, 4,486,364 persons have been fully vaccinated with 67,104 persons receiving a first booster dose.
Source: GNA