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Health coalition calls on government to keep momentum on attaining UHC

By Dennis Peprah, GNA

Sunyani, Nov. 15, GNA – With about eleven
years to go, the momentum towards achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by
2030 must be kept higher in the country.

Ms Evelyn Bema Darkwa, the Bono, Bono East
and Ahafo Regional Chairperson of the Ghana Coalition of NGOs in Health (GCNH),
has said.

This could be done through robust awareness
creation on the importance of good health, healthy lifestyles as well as
emphasizing the right to health and healthcare services, she said.

Speaking at a general meeting of the
regional chapter of the GCNH in Sunyani, Ms Darkwa called on civil society
actors to support the effort to hold government, local leaders and
decision-makers accountable to their commitments to improve access to quality
healthcare.

She said the GCNH envisages that Ghana would
attain its goals so it is committed to ensure increased and improved universal
healthcare coverage services in the country and accelerate the SDGs Three
attainment by 2030.

The United Nations SDGs Three seeks to reduce
by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases
through prevention and treatment, as well as promoting mental health and
well-being by 2030.

Ms Darkwa expressed concern on the lack of
access to essential health services in the country and this remains a major
cause of ill-health and early mortality.

UHC is a key component in effort to achieve
the human right to health, she said, and called for strong partnerships between
government, private sector and civil society organisations towards creating UHC
scheme that fitted the social, political and cultural contexts of the regions
and the country.

Ms Jane Adae-Kyeremeh, the Bono, Bono East
and Ahafo Regional Disease Control Officer and Expanded Programme on
Immunization (EPI) Coordinator, said the Regional Health Directorate has
achieved success in immunization in the three regions.

She said immunization coverage generally has
improved but expressed worry that it was difficult to cover some parts of the
regions during the rainy seasons because of bad roads and lack of motorbikes.

Ms Addae-Kyeremeh said a lot is needed to be
done to improve immunization coverage in the Dormaa Central Municipality in the
Bono and Pru East and Pru West Districts in the Bono East Regions.

She said with the availability of
motorbikes, health personnel would be able to reach out to hard-to-reach
communities in the regions.

GNA 

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