The 2016 manifesto of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) was officially launched by President John Mahama in Sunyani on Saturday.

The 80-page document titled "Changing Lives, Transforming Ghana" was unveiled in style at the Sunyani Coronation Park with all the stalwarts of the party present.

This was done some four days after President John Mahama presented highlights of the manifesto at the Banquet Hall of the State House in Accra.

At the presentation, the President indicated that the Accra Psychiatric Hospital will be moved to Pantang and the Pantang Mental Hospital will be developed into a first first-class health facility.

The achievements of the government in the last four years in the Health sector have been outlined in the Manifesto. Also listed are government's commitments from 2017-2021 if given the mandate on December 7.

For the entire 2016 Manifesto of the NDC, click here.

The following is the full details of the NDC manifesto promises on Health which also falls under Putting the People First, one of four thematic areas the manifesto has been divided into.

HEALTH

Ghanaians are living longer and healthier lives. Ghana’s life expectancy at birth increased from 60 years in 2008 to 63 years by 2013. Ghana’s current Life Expectancy at birth is higher than Nigeria’s (55 years), Cote d’Ivoire’s (51.5 years) as well as the sub-Sahara Africa average (56.8 years). Infant, Child and Maternal mortality rates are all on a downward trend. Year Infant mortality Child mortality Under-5 mortality 2008 50 31 80 2014 41 19 60

In our 2012 Manifesto, we committed ourselves to delivering a better and improved healthcare system. Resulting from the strategic investments made by the NDC Government, we achieved our target and we are working

to improve on the gains. We give credit to the ingenuity and responsiveness of health workers for effective prevention, management and control of diseases, improved health conditions and better quality of life of citizens.

OUR ACHIEVEMENTS

We have achieved the following in the health sector:

• Established the National Ambulance Service Training School;

• Trained over 500 Emergency Medical Technicians;

• Increased the number of Health Training Institutions to 95 in 2015;

• Increased the number of Licensed Midwives from 500 in 2009 to over 2,000 in 2015.

Teaching Hospitals

• Expansion of 400-bed Tamale Teaching Hospital to an 800-bed facility;

 • Construction of 617-bed University of Ghana Teaching Hospital;

• Construction of new modern Emergency Department for the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital;

• Refurbishment of Intensive Care Unit (ICU) for the Department of Surgery at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital;

• Refurbishment of the Operating Theatre at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital;

• Completion of the Eye Care Centre at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi.

Institutional Hospitals

• Commencement of construction of 500-bed Military Hospital in KumasI;

• Renovation and expansion of 104-bed Police Hospital in Accra;

• Construction of 130-bed Maritime Hospital in Tema.

Regional Hospitals

• Upgrading and expansion of Greater Accra Regional Hospital at Ridge in Accra to 620-bed capacity;

• Construction of 250-bed Ashanti Regional Hospital at Sewua;

• Continuation of the construction of the Upper West Regional Hospital, Wa.

District Hospitals

• Design, construction and equipping of six 120-bed District Hospitals with an integrated IT system at Dodowa, Fomena, Abetifi, Garu- Tempane, Kumawu and Sekondi;

 • Upgrading of the Takoradi hospital;

• Expansion of the Bolgatanga hospital into a 386-bed facility;

• Design, construction and equipping of 60-bed District Hospitals for five district capitals – Salaga, Tepa, Nsawkaw, Twifo-Praso and Konongo-Odumasi;

• Construction of a 100-bed Madina Hospital in the Greater Accra Region;

 • Initiation of processes for the commencement of five District Hospitals at Somanya, Buipe, Sawla-Tuna-Kalba, Tolon and Wheta. Polyclinics The following have been completed and are currently operational:

• Five (5) Polyclinics in the Upper West Region at Wechau, Babile, Lambussie, Ko and Han;

• Five (5) Polyclinics in the Northern Region at Kpandai, Tatale, Janga, Chereponi and Karaga;

• Five (5) Polyclinics in the Western Region at Wassa Dunkwa, Bogoso, Nsuaem, Mpohor and Elubo;

• Five (5) Polyclinics in the Brong Ahafo Region at Nkrankwanta, Wamfie, Kwatire, Techimantia and Bomaa. Work is commencing on the construction of 16 more polyclinics as follows:

• Five (5) Polyclinics in the Greater Accra Region at Adenta, Ashaiman, Bortianor, Oduman and Sege;

• Ten (10) Polyclinics in the Central Region at Bisease, Gomoa Dawurampong, Binpong Akunfude, Etsii Sunkwa, Asikuma Gyamena, Agona Duakwa, Biriwa, Ekumfi Narkwa, Twifo Atimokwa and Gomoa Potsin; • One (1) Polyclinic at Bamboi. Additional 20 Polyclinics will be constructed in Ashanti, Volta, Eastern and Upper East Regions. Health Centres We have constructed 18 Health Centres across the country. CHPS Compounds We have completed over 1,200 CHPS Compounds and an additional 1,600 are under construction.

HIV/AIDS

We have:

• Reduced annual AIDS deaths by 43%;

• Achieved over 50% reduction in transmission of HIV from mother-to-child;

• Provided PMTCT (Preventing Mother to Child Transmission) services to 81% of pregnant women;

• Treated 66% of infected pregnant women to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV;

• Reduced drastically the prevalence of HIV among exposed babies to 8% at birth and 21% after breastfeeding down from 32%.

National Medical Equipment Replacement Programme

We have provided and supplied critical diagnostic and treatment equipment such as MRI machines, CT scan, fluoroscopy machine, x-ray machines, digital mammography machines, oxygen plants and ambulances to over 150 hospitals across the country.

The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) We have:

• Increased the out-patient utilisation of the NHIS from 9.3 million in 2008 to 29.6 million in 2015;

• Increased claims payment from GH¢183 Million in 2008 to GH¢1,073 billion in 2014;

• Established new Claims Processing Centres at Tamale, Cape Coast and Kumasi to decentralise and expedite processing of claims by service providers;

• Introduced e-Claims to deal with logistic challenges and reduce physical paper claims.

Accident and Trauma Centre

We have conducted preparatory work for the establishment of an Accident and Emergency Hospital at Buipe to cater for emergency and accident victims in the northern part of the central spine arterial road network.

OUR COMMITMENT (2017-2021) 

In our next term, we will undertake the following:

• Diversify the sources of funding for the NHIS by allocating an approved percentage of the ABFA from our Petroleum Revenue;

• Continue to prioritise access, equity, affordability and reliability of health services;

• Reduce the incidence of malaria by 50%;

• Reduce cases of maternal and neonatal deaths by a further 50%;

• Create more spaces for maternal and neonatal care in existing health facilities;

• Reduce further mother to child HIV transmission;

 • Motivate health workers by ensuring appropriate and rewarding conditions of service that respond to changing trends in healthcare;

• Increase supply and fair distribution of health personnel across the country;

• Scale up the implementation of e-Health systems piloted in Korle-bu, Wa and Zebila hospitals to all secondary and tertiary hospitals;

• Ensure strict compliance with data protection laws of the country to protect the medical records and the privacy of patients;

• Complete ongoing Regional Hospitals in Ashanti and Upper West regions;

 • Complete construction of regional hospitals in Upper East, Eastern and Western Regions;

• Undertake a comprehensive upgrade of the Tema General Hospital;

 • Establish a National Infectious Disease Centre;

• Mainstream mental healthcare into the health delivery system and ensure adequate resourcing and infrastructural development;

• Continue to provide Polyclinics and District Hospitals especially in the newly created districts;

• Continue the construction of the 120-bed Bekwai Hospital in the Ashanti Region;

• Complete 15 Polyclinics in the Greater Accra and Central Regions;

• Construct 20 Polyclinics in Ashanti, Eastern, Volta and Upper East Regions;

• Continue the construction of Community Health Planning Service (CHPS) Compounds;

• Standardize the CHPS Compounds Operational Zones and Health Centres countrywide;

• Strengthen the partnership with local pharmaceutical companies to make them more efficient, reliable and competitive both locally and internationally;

• Take appropriate measures to achieve an uninterrupted supply of anti-retroviral drugs for HIV and AIDS patients including supply of ARVs from local pharmaceutical producing companies;

• Support bilateral and other exchange programmes for our health personnel to expose them to best practices around the world;

• Continue to implement policies on the integration of Traditional Medicine into the mainstream health care delivery system in compliance with the provisions of the Traditional Medicine Practice Act, 2000 (Act 575);

• Extend the on-going free Insecticide Treated Nets (ITN) distribution programme to attain the 2005 Abuja target of 60% of children sleeping under insecticide treated nets countrywide by 2020;

• Expand the bio-larvicide spraying programme to reduce the incidence of malaria.

Medicinal Plants It is estimated that about 80% of the world’s population rely on herbal medicine, creating a huge world market for the product. Between 2008 and 2013, export of medicinal plants from Ghana increased five-fold from US$8million to approximately US$ 40million. In the next four years, we will:

• Support the large-scale cultivation of medicinal plants for export;

• Support the manufacture of traditional remedies for diseases;

• Create a permanent body to review the Ghana Herbal Pharmacopoeia on a regular basis;

 • Strengthen regulatory mechanisms to ensure safe, efficacious and efficient administration of herbal medicine;

• Continue to support the Centre for Research into Plant Medicine, Mampong-Akwapim, and the Centre for Traditional and Herbal Medicine, KNUST;

• Establish the School of Traditional Medicine at Keta in addition to the School of Pharmacy as a satellite campus of the University of Health and Allied Sciences. Accident and Trauma Centers We will:

• Upgrade existing health facilities located in the following towns along some of the major highways into Accident and Trauma Centres: o Sogakope (Volta Region) o Anomabo (Central Region) o Half-Assini (Western Region) o Nkawkaw (Eastern Region) o Kintampo (Brong Ahafo Region) o Techiman (Brong Ahafo Region) o Wa (Upper West Region) o Hohoe (Volta Region) o Gambia No. 2 (Brong Ahafo Region) o Buipe (Northern Region)

• Train more doctors in Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) to help in the specialized handling of accident and trauma victims.

HIV/AIDS and the 90-90-90 Fast-Track Targets by 2020

We shall prioritise and implement the National Strategic Plan 2016-2020 on HIV/AIDS and work towards achieving the 90-90-90 fast-track targets (90% of People Living with HIV know their status, 90% of People Living with HIV on Antiretroviral treatment and 90% immune suppression). The priorities shall include strengthening of strategic information and health systems, community empowerment to scale up HIV testing, treatment and targeted behaviour change among others. Additionally, we will continue to work to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV by 2017 and meet the needs of adolescents and youth.

MENTAL HEALTH

We shall prioritise mental health care and ensure strict implementation of the Mental Health Act 2012 (Act 846) by working with local and international partners to galvanise support for the attainment of the objectives that will drastically improve mental healthcare in Ghana.

To this end, we will stimulate the training of more psychiatric specialists (doctors and nurses), encourage more psychologists and allied professionals to specialise in mental health care and ensure mainstreaming of mental healthcare in our hospitals.

We will move the Accra Psychiatric Hospital to Pantang and develop the Pantang Mental Hospital into a first class mental health facility.  We will build two additional psychiatric hospitals in Ashanti and the Northern Regions.

PHYSICAL EXERCISE FOR HEALTH AND WELL BEING

Ghana continues to be affected by the double burden of communicable and non- communicable disease. While establishing the National Infectious Disease Centre, stepping up campaigns and undertaking activities to improve personal hygiene and sanitation to deal with communicable diseases, we shall also vigorously create national awareness on the need to combat lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and stroke.

In addition to Physical Education Exercises in schools, we shall promote the establishment of Community Residence Health Teams to encourage regular communal physical exercise, regular drills in Basic Life Support and Health Talks, with the view to inculcating healthy lifestyles in the citizenry.