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An inaugural meeting for the implementation of an agreement on health initiatives was yesterday held in Accra.
The tripartite development partner countries — US, Japan, and the Republic of Korea — signed the agreement with the government in July this year.
The memorandum of cooperation (MOC) focuses on three key health priorities —primary health care, enhancement of health governance at the sub national level (regions and districts), and global health security.
The intervention will facilitate the building of a more resilient health system in the country.
The meeting, which was hosted by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), discussed how to implement practical strategies to achieve universal health coverage across the five regions of the north.
The Country Director of KOICA Ghana Office, Dong Hyun Lee, said representatives of the partners expressed their commitment to fulfil the agreement.
He said KOICA, USAID, and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), each came with its own unique support for the successful implementation of the programme.
“The Republic of Korea and KOICA highly value the significance of this harmonisation. On the other hand, we are dedicated to integrating our support with the strategy of the government.
“It also means that we will do our best to align with our fellow development partners.
“As we start our journey today, I assure you that KOICA’s commitment goes beyond technical and financial contributions.
It will continue to recognise that the true architects of Ghana’s success are Ghanaians,” Mr Lee said.
The Mission Director of USAID/Ghana, Kimberly Rosen, also, said the US, through USAID, was pleased with the partnership, saying by working together, they could build a more resilient primary health care system.
She said it was the first of such agreement of cooperation to be signed by the three countries and that it would allow them to leverage their collective and individual strengths to support health care in the country while eliminating any duplication of efforts.
“Already, USAID’s integrated health programming supports the government in maternal, reproductive, newborn and child health, nutrition, malaria, HIV and social protection, among other areas,” the director,” Ms Rosen said.
The Chief Representative of JICA Ghana Office, Suzuki Momoko, expressed delight in the efforts of all stakeholders to operationalise the agreement.
“We believe that strengthening partnership among development partners in all sectors, including health, is a critical input for development cooperation,” she said.
Ms Momoko, also, expressed the hope that the agreement would ultimately engender sustainable improvement in health outcomes at both national and sub national levels to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
On behalf of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), the Director, Public Health Division of the GHS, Dr Kofi Issah, thanked the three partner countries for being dependable stakeholders in healthcare delivery in the country over the years.
He said by joining forces, the partners, who had been working in silos, could ensure efficiency for better results.
