GIZ, MESTI donate mechanised borehole to Ussher Hospital

The German Agency for International Cooperation, GIZ, and the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI) Monday handed over a newly constructed mechanized borehole to the Ussher Hospital at Jamestown, Accra.

The donation forms part of an E-Waste programme implemented by GIZ in partnership with MESTI to improve the management and disposal of electronic waste in Ghana.

Mr Markus Spitzbart, Head of Programmes for GIZ, said Covid-19 had underscored the need for clean water as a basic human right and a necessity for the effective functioning of health care systems and facilities.

“Today, together with MESTI, the German Cooperation and North-Rhine Westphalia, the GIZ Ghana E-Waste Programme is happy to have made this contribution of clean potable water accessible to the Ussher Hospital in service to members of the Jamestown Community,” he said.

Mr Spitzbart noted that the hospital had an insufficient water supply, which made it difficult to operate the facility and treat patients, hence, the construction of the borehole to improve health conditions and promote environmental cleanliness.

Dr. Jude Adomako, Acting District Director of Ghana Health Service, said the pandemic had underscored the importance of water, sanitation and hygiene in the health care delivery system.

“Ussher Hospital and by extension Ashiedu Keteke sub metro cannot overemphasize the importance of this project especially at this time of the pandemic, in giving better continuous and sustained healthcare to the entire populace and country by extension,” he added.

The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in 2020 released funds to help mitigate the spread of the Coronavirus in Ghana.

With financial support from the State Chancellery of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), part of the funds was allocated to commissioning a borehole at the Hospital.