FREE MEDICAL INSURANCE FOR THE POOR (PAGE 20)

Story: A. Kofoya-Tetteh, Asamankese

A total of 3,686 people considered to be very poor in the West Akyem Municipality, have been registered with the Municipal Health Insurance Scheme without paying anything.
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Kwabena Sintim-Aboagye, made this known at the assembly’s ordinary meeting at Asamankese.
He said the assembly was compelled to undertake that initiative to enable such unfortunate persons to also benefit from quality health care.
Mr Sintim-Aboagye said the assembly would not sit aloof why a large number of people wallowing in poverty, were denied quality health care.
He appealed to the not-too-poor people in the area to register with the scheme to make it possible to cater for the very poor.
According to Mr Sintim-Aboagye, 64,873 people had so far registered with the scheme as of the end of March, this year, who paid a total premium of GH¢251,589.
With regard to internally generated revenue, he said last year, GH¢238,112.55 representing 132 per cent of the estimated GH¢180,417 was collected, adding that GH¢222,004.70 had been targeted for 2008.
The MCE stated that the significant increase in internal revenue together with an amount of GH¢728,172.47, which the assembly received as its share of the common fund, had made it possible to provide social amenities, such as school blocks, water and sanitation facilities and the rehabilitation of roads in the area.
The projects, he said, were either funded by the assembly from its own resources or in collaboration with its development partners such as the European Union.
Mr Sintim-Aboagye stated that the Japanese International co-operation Agency (JICA) was funding the extension of electricity from the national grid to a number of communities, such as Brekumanso, Anoma Kwadwo, Kakoase, Nyankoma and Amaako.
He stressed that all those facilities together with poverty alleviation programmes initiated by the government, were helping to improve the living standard of the people.
Mr Sintim-Aboagye expressed his appreciation to President J.A. Kufuor for donating GH¢30,000 and GH¢20,000, respectively to the Asamankese and Adeiso senior high schools, for the construction of girls’ dormitories in those educational institutions.
He said the completion of the two projects would improve learning in the schools.
Earlier on, the Presiding Member of the assembly, Mr Daniel Saforo, had called on the assembly members to endeavour to identify the needs of the people in their communities, to be addressed.