The Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta toured the La General Hospital to confirm that work had indeed begun.
After the tour on Wednesday, November 29, he said service delivery at the “La General Hospital is poised to resume next year.”
Mr Ofori-Atta earlier said that the government had renegotiated the contract terms of the 160-bed La General Hospital project. The project, he said, would now be funded through the national budget.
Spent the morning touring La General Hospital to confirm that work had indeed begun, and service delivery at the La General Hospital is poised to resume next year. #BuildingBackBetter #Budget2024 #NkunimBudget pic.twitter.com/TrclxX7zQW
— Office of the Finance Minister-Ghana (@oofmghana) November 29, 2023
His comments came after the Minority Members of Parliament criticized the Minister of Health Kwaku Agyeman-Manu on the floor of Parliament on Tuesday, November 14, 2024, for failing to give timelines on when exactly the project would start.
The La General Hospital was demolished in July 2020 due to what authorities say were severe structural problems reported by the hospital’s administration.
President Akufo-Addo cut the sod for the reconstruction of the La General Hospital Redevelopment Project on August 10, 2020, but work has yet to begin.
Residents of La and its environs expressed anger over the undue delay, with the MP for the area calling on the first lady to intervene.
On Tuesday, November 14, Health Minister Kwaku Agyemang-Manu revealed that the Finance Ministry had successfully secured €50 million in local funding for the reconstruction of the hospital.
But Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta told Parliament during the presentation of the 2024 budget statement on Wednesday, November 15 that “the contractor is expected back on site next week” which has since started.