The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia on July 24, 2020 commissioned Ghana’s first-ever 100-bed Infectious Disease Centre at the Ga-East Municipal Hospital.
The project, which was undertaken by the Ghana Private Sector Fund at the National COVID-19 Treatment Centre commenced on April 17, 2020.
The project which was expected to be completed in May delayed due to various design enhancement including modifications in response to requests by the Ghana Medical Association (GMA), other infectious disease clinicians and biomedical scientists.
The Ghana COVID-19 Private Sector Fund launched a crowdfunding initiative to raise money to complete its flagship project, the infectious disease isolation and treatment facility at the Ga East Hospital in Accra.
Work on the facility began in mid-April after President Akufo Addo used video conferencing facilities to superintend a ceremony to break ground for work to start.
The project has been completed, having drawn financial support from various private and public sector organisations and high net worth individuals.
The Ghana COVID-19 Private Sector Fund was faced with a funding gap of ¢7.1 million but had to cover it through the #10GhanaChallenge.
The #10GhanaChallenge offered as many Ghanaians as possible an opportunity to be part of history by contributing as little as ¢10 each towards the first infectious diseases treatment facility in Ghana.
“This is a very historic project. Ghana has never had an infectious diseases medical facility and those of us who have been at the forefront of this project have been filled with a sense of privilege to serve our country in its health delivery system,” said the managing trustee of the Ghana COVID-19 Private Sector Fund.
The Ghana COVID-19 Private Sector Fund plans to build three more of such facilities in Kumasi, Takoradi and Tamale to care and treat for people who contract infectious diseases like cerebrospinal meningitis.
