He said the hospital project, which is expected to be completed this year, would be the first of its kind in the region and the nation as a whole.

The hospital will be well equipped with the needed medical equipment and facilities to take care of the health needs of children.

“This major project when completed will take care of the medical conditions of children in the constituency and adjoining communities who are often referred to other hospitals to receive medical care,” he said.

Handover

Mr Afenyo-Markin, who is also the Deputy Majority Leader in Parliament, disclosed this when he handed over projects worth GH¢2 million to the Winneba Vocational Training Institute. The projects comprised a well-furnished one-storey block and two pavilions.

The construction of the children’s hospital which is being funded by the MP will add on to the already two existing health facilities in the area; the Municipal and Trauma and Specialist hospitals.

New facility

He stated that the new hospital facility will provide medical services to children with all manner of diseases who are often referred to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital and other health facilities.

“The objective is to put a stop to the situation where children with medical conditions in Winneba and its environs are often referred to other hospitals, since they cannot be treated at health facilities in the town,” he explained.

“It is sad to note that sometimes children referred to other hospitals die in transit. It is therefore important to end such preventable deaths of children in the area,” he added.

“My vision as MP for the area is to have a state-of-the-art hospital which will be dedicated to the provision of medical care to only children so as to reduce the pressure on the already existing facilities,” he said.

Other ongoing projects

He announced the completion of three community day senior high schools (SHSs) at Essuekyir, Ateitu and New Winneba to reduce the pressure on the Winneba Secondary School, saying “we need more public SHSs to give true meaning to the free SHS policy.”

Mr Afenyo-Markin said “if students would have to travel long distances to access secondary education due to the unavailability of community day SHSs, and parents would have to pay so much for hostels due to lack of space, then there is a problem.”

He stated that work was also ongoing for the construction of a new high court building, offices for the Ghana Revenue Authority, National Health Insurance Scheme and a new Fire Service Station in the municipality.

“All completed and ongoing projects are intended to lay a solid foundation towards industrialising the constituency,” he said, noting that “these projects are support systems towards creating an enabling environment for private sector growth in the area.”

He said “the projects will open up the local economy and attract many private investors to set up businesses in the area in order to provide direct and indirect jobs for the teeming unemployed youth.”

He further urged the people to come together in unity irrespective of their political affiliation and societal status to push for the growth and development of the municipality.