The heart of Ghana’s healthcare system is under severe strain as over 120,000 nurses and midwives continue their nationwide strike, leaving more than 300 public hospitals and clinics across all 16 regions grappling with near-total service paralysis.
In a joint press briefing with the Minister of Health, the Deputy Minister of Finance Thomas Nyarko Ampem issued a heartfelt and urgent appeal to the striking Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) to return to the negotiation table.
Nyarko Ampem did not mince words about the critical role nurses and midwives play in Ghana’s health sector.
“Our nurses are very, very critical to healthcare delivery, and we appreciate what they do,” he said.
However, he also laid bare the stark fiscal realities facing the government if the conditions of service are fully implemented.
He stated “But the reality is that we have over 120,000 nurses, and the implementation of the current condition of service that they are demanding will have serious consequences for the budget.
He continued “In fact, if we fully implement it, we are going to add in excess of two billion cedis to the compensation budget.
He also stressed that, with Ghana’s debt levels hovering at unsustainable heights, the government has committed to maintaining a 1.5% primary balance surplus each year, a crucial target to bring national finances back on track.
“We have all committed that in our resolve to reset the economy of this country, we must maintain a 1.5 percent primary balance surplus every year in order to bring our debt levels to sustainable levels. And so it is important for us to manage expenditure,” he explained.
The Deputy Minister reaffirmed the government’s readiness to negotiate, listen, and find a workable solution.
“So we want to appeal to our revered nurses that we are willing to negotiate, to sit with them and the Ministry of Health to agree on a roadmap that will help us incorporate what can be accommodated in the budget for next year,” he noted.
He appealed to the nurses to join hands with the Ministry of Health and Finance to craft a realistic roadmap that balances their rightful demands with the country’s budgetary constraints.
He stressed “We want to appeal to them that they should let us sit down and discuss what can be accommodated so that we can all have a win-win situation for all of us.”
On the other side, the GRNMA remains steadfast, insisting that their demands are both reasonable and urgent.
They warn that any delay in addressing their conditions of service will further erode the quality of care and deepen the crisis in public health facilities.
Source : www.kumasimail.com /Kwadwo Owusu
