Morobe needs K123m for rural health

MOROBE needs K123 million to ensure all its rural health facilities are functional within a year, provincial health chairman Jackty Yotipo says.
One aid post needs K60,000 to function in a year while all aid posts within one local level council require K1.35 million a year.
Yotipo said to manage 365 aid posts in 33 LLGs required K63 million annually but health centres and rural hospitals the figure would be K123 million.
“Lack of funds had resulted in the closure of 119 aid posts over the recent years.”
Yotipo was prompted by health issues raised in media by the special parliamentary committee regarding public reforms and service delivery  last week.
Provincial health adviser Dr Micah Yawing said they received functional grant of K1.7 million and K5 million additional from internal revenue.
However, Yotipo said the amounts were “peanuts” and inadequate to cater for operations of rural health facilities in 33 Local Level Goverments.
 Meanwhile, Governor Kelly Naru said the closure of 119 aid posts was “most unwelcome”.
“We were in the process of reopening a lot of them but current budget cuts means more will be closed as the consequences of  government hell-bent on massive borrowing only to spend on luxury big ticket projects it wants in Port Moresby” Naru claimed.
He said that harsh conditions without accessibility to deliver drugs and patient referrals and staff welfare resulted in the relocation of orderlies.
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