The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has signed a framework agreement with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) to strengthen healthcare delivery under a Community-Based Primary Healthcare project.
Known as the Record of Discussion (RoD), the $12 million agreement signed in Accra last Monday will enable the parties to build Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) compounds in 15 districts in the Upper East Region and seven districts in the North East Region under the agreement dubbed “CHPS+ Phase II”.
The project to be implemented by the GHS will span five years from 2022 to 2027 as a continuation of the government of Korea’s commitment to helping the country attain Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
The CHPS+ Phase I, which was a $9-million project implemented in the Upper East Region from 2016 to 2021 resulted in the reduction of institutional maternal mortality ratio and a more than 50 per cent reduction in under-five mortality ratio in the region.
Project scope
The project will equip CHPS zones, health centres, district and regional hospitals with various medical equipment while funding the training of doctors and midwives to improve their capacity in delivering the required services for maternal and newborn care and other medical practices.
It is also to enhance and widen the coverage of the community tricycle ambulances which enable community members to transport critical cases such as emergency delivery from their community to the next point of referral using the emergency transport system.
Similarly, the project will support the day-to-day operation of community health officers (CHOs) by providing them with motorbikes for more effective and efficient outreach services.
Ultimately, the project is to improve the delivery of primary health service at the community level through capacity-building of CHOs and nurses.
Expanding project
The Country Director of KOICA Ghana, Mooheon Kong, said following the success of the CHPS+ Project Phase I, it was only appropriate for the two partners to keep the momentum and further scale up their work beyond the Upper East Region.
“We deliberated on various engagements and eventually designed the second phase of the CHPS+ project with a bigger volume, wider geographical coverage and greater scope,” he explained.
He, therefore, reiterated the agency’s commitment to continue supporting the core strategies of the GHS in its primary healthcare delivery through CHPS and the Network of Practice (NoP) system.
“For this is the only way we can save lives and see results,” he added.
Gratitude
The Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, expressed his profound gratitude to KOICA for contributing to the country’s vision of attaining UHC.
He said that the project would not only boost healthcare delivery in that part of the country, but will also address and speak to the direct needs of the people living in the two regions.
“We promise to continue working with you and to be more efficient in the use of these resources to ensure the project achieves its desired results,” Dr Kuma-Aboagye said.