George & Angelina Owusu Foundation Contributes $2m Towards The Construction Of A $10m State Of The Art Medical Facility


The George and Angelina Owusu Foundation has contributed $2m towards the construction of a $10m state of the art medical facility at Akyawkrom in the Ejisu Juabeng Municipality.

At the colourful sod cutting ceremony graced by some 500 people including the Ministry of Health, a delegation of Chiefs headed by the Akyempimhene, Nana Adusei Poku, representatives of Sanford World Clinics and natives of Akyawkrom, Mr. George Owusu bemoaned the spate of inadequate medical facilities and personnel in the country.

He intimated that the current death rates caused by the Ebola outbreak is at the forefront of everyone’s mind as the virus spreads like wildfire in some parts of West Africa due to inadequate health care, insufficient facilities and the lack of professionals.

He said no one should suffer for want of adequate medical facilities and personnel.

Touching on the construction of the health facility, Mr. George Owusu who is also a former Country Director of Kosmos Energy indicated that the $10m health facility is intended to alleviate that suffering by providing a first-class medical facility for the people in the area and beyond.

In 2012, there was less than one doctor per ten thousand people in Ghana, a situation he says the foundation is passionate about improving.

In an interaction with the media, the couple George and Angelina Owusu revealed their commitment to contributing $2m towards the project.

So far about GHc400,000 has been disbursed for the acquisition, compensation of farmers whose fields will be affected by the project and commencement of work on the 20 acre land site. The remaining $8m is expected to be sourced through fund raising.

The concept of the hospital was conceived a year ago and will see its first phase focusing on the construction of a 2-storey clinic structure by 2015 to provide pre-natal, maternal and wound care. The broader vision is to grow the facility into a first class non-profit Medical Center within the next 5 years which will be used as a hub for telemedicine, a modern system of using telecommunication and information technologies to provide clinical healthcare from a distance.

The 100 bed state of the art medical facility which will be managed by Sanford Health is meant to handle major surgeries including prostate cancer. It will also support the training of medical doctors and other health professionals at KNUST in Kumasi as well as provide accommodation for medical professionals.

The chairman for the event, the first President of Africa Development Bank (ADB) on his part stated that the current state of the cedi has the tendency of scaring potential investors away from investing in the country. Kantinka Dr. Donkor Fordjour went on to commend the couple George Owusu and his wife, Angelina Owusu for their devotion despite the unsteady nature of the foreign exchange rate in the country.

He called on the health sector to rally behind Mr. George and Angelina Owusu to complete the medical facility as scheduled.

The Deputy Ashanti Regional Minister, Joseph Yamin lauded the initiative admitting that government cannot do it all. He however went on to urge others to emulate this gesture to boost the healthcare delivery in the country.

Country President of the Sanford World Clinics, Kojo Taylor revealed over 80% of health facilities are located in urban centers, majority of the population live in rural areas, with private sector providing services to over 50% of health needs of the people.

He also acknowledged the vibrancy and positive contribution of the private sector towards complementing the public healthcare sector.

The ultra-modern health facility is a collaboration between the George and Angelina Owusu Foundation and Sanford World Clinics.

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