I’m determined to finish Agenda 111 project before I leave office in 2025 – Akufo-Addo

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said that he is determined to complete the Agenda 111 project before he exits office on January 7, 2025.

Mr. Akufo-Addo said the project forms part of his government’s efforts to improve Ghana’s healthcare sector.

Speaking at the 60 years celebration of the University of Ghana Medical School in Accra on Friday, March 25, Mr. Akufo-Addo said “good health is fundamental to all we do. It is the reason access to quality healthcare is a right that is enshrined in the constitution, he added.

“This constitutional right can best be materialized if health institutions like the University of Ghana Medical School, nursing training schools, and other allied health training institutions produce the required numbers of competent personnel who enjoy the confidence of the population.

“it is on this basis I believe that the theme for this celebration ‘ Building 60 years of quality medical education, the role of technology’ is so apt in the times in which we find ourselves.

“Many of us here are aware of the commitments made by the government since January 2017 when I took office in the areas of education, health, and technology.

“Over the last five years, we have pursued policies in these sectors of national life to improve this quality and help place our nation on the path of sustained development progress and prosperity.”

“This commitment to improving our healthcare system is evident in the Agenda 111 initiative. This project will provide 111 standard 100-bed district hospitals with accommodation for doctors and nurses in districts without district hospitals, six new regional hospitals for each of the six new regions, rehabilitate the Efia Nkwanta hospital in the Western Region, one new regional hospital for the Western Region and three psychiatry hospitals for each of the three zones of the country ie. the North, Middle, and the Coastal. The entire package at an estimated cost of US$1.765billion,” he said.

He added “Such a development will help make Ghana a center of medical excellence and a preferred destination for medical tourism in West Africa. A great deal of the preparatory work for the execution of this ambitious project has been completed. It is my determination that the entire project will be completed before I leave office on 7th January 2025.”

President Akufo-Addo on Tuesday, August 17 2021 commissioned the Agenda 111 project which will ensure the construction of 111 hospitals across the country.

During the commission of the project in Trede in the Ashanti Region, the President said among other things that the project will be providing 20,000 jobs for health professionals when completed.