As part of these efforts the GHS in partnership with the World Bank have commissioned the Bay Commercials Limited, a building construction company, for the next seven months to complete renovation works on one of its buildings to house the national Emergency Operational Centre (EOC) at the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) at Korle-bu.

Dr Anarfi Asamoa-Baah, the former Deputy Director-General of WHO, and Consultant of the project, led a team from the World Bank office in Accra and the contractors to the project site, to ascertain the status of the building, and assess the level of work to be done within the scheduled period for the renovation works.

He underscored the importance of emergency preparedness and response, as well as disease surveillance and effective control activities for countries globally, to ensure preventable deaths and morbidity.

He said over the years, efforts have been made to step up public healthcare delivery locally and internationally, and the challenge of ensuring quality and Universal Health Care has become more crucial due to the emergence and re-emerging numerous disease conditions, which calls for sustained surveillance and rapid emergency preparedness of all countries.

Dr Anthony Seddoh, the Senior Operations Officer and Task Team Leader at the World Bank Office in Accra, later presented keys to two Toyota Land Cruiser vehicles to the GHS, to augment the effective operation of an effective surveillance and disease control of the CDC and public health emergency systems.