Kumasi, – SEND GHANA, a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) which focuses on pro-poor policy and development programme monitoring in Ghana, is advocating for a separate budgetary allocation for immunisation in the national health budget.
The organisation also wants the Ministry of Finance to keep its commitment by fully releasing funds allocated to the Ministry of Health to fulfil its obligations.
Mrs. Harriet Nuamah Agyemang, Programmes Director of SEND GHANA, made the call at a stakeholder’s dialogue on immunisation credibility monitoring held in Kumasi.
This follows a monitoring exercise which was undertaken in 2022 by SEND GHANA in five selected districts including Asuogyaman, Shia Osudoku, Tatale/Sanguli, Kesena Nankana and Ho.
With funding support from the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and International Budget Partnership (IBP), the exercise sought to assess the financial or budgetary commitments to immunisation by the various districts.
In a presentation on the findings of the monitoring exercise, Mrs. Agyemang said government must deliberately increase allocation and releases as preparation towards full self-financing of immunisation in the next few years.
She underlined the need to uphold High Health Budget Execution as targeted by Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Indicator 16.6.1.
The Programmes Director indicated that the government had demonstrated that immunisation was a priority through the endorsement of international and national frameworks, adding that, all the five districts underscored the importance of immunisation.
She, however, bemoaned the delays in the release of funds for immunisation which she said affected the level of support from the District Assemblies to the District Health Management Teams (DHMT).
On budget allocation for health and immunisation, she disclosed that government projected the comprehensive Multi-year Plan (CMYP) 2020-2024 to cost 514 million dollars, but approximately, 52 per cent of the cost could be funded by government, leaving a gap of 48 per cent.
The annual expenditure, according to her, was to grow from 5.3 million dollars in 20208 to 8.9 million dollars in 2022, reaching 13 million dollars in 2024.
Mt. Christopher Dapaah, a Local Partner to SEND GHANA in the Northern zone, said ensuring routine immunisation at all levels was more cost effective than responding to disease outbreaks.
He called on all stakeholders to play their respective roles to safeguard public health.
Mr Dapaah entreated the participants to make proper use of the information shared to improve health outcomes, especially on immunisation in their respective districts.
Source: Ghana News Agency
