President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has urged local pharmaceutical companies to support the fight against the deadly coronavirus disease (COVID-19) with the production of the basic items needed to stem the pandemic.
In a meeting with leaders of pharmaceutical companies and financial institutions at the Jubilee House in Accra yesterday, the President said it was important to produce items such as disposable gloves, sanitisers and face masks locally, and in large quantities without importing them.
He said the crises should be an opportunity for the companies to produce more of the medical items needed in health facilities in the country.
“Sometimes it takes bad situations or crises to reveal the obvious truth. Our society is too dependent on foreign made things. We are far too dependent on things that are made abroad and imported for use. We should be making most of the things we use in Ghana ourselves,” he said.
President Akufo-Addo said an unfortunate surge in the outbreak in the country would reveal that the country is “very naked,” and urged the pharmaceutical companies to help address the problem by investing in the mass production of the items needed to combat the pandemic.
According to him, the pharmaceutical companies would be building the blocks for the future transformation of the country’s healthcare sector if they start investing in the production of basic items such as sanitisers, gloves, among others.
While acknowledging the challenge of accessing money in the country for such endeavours, the President urged the banks and financial institutions to find ways to support the growth of the sector and the country’s health system.
“We cannot continue like that. We have to live of our own ingenuity, creativity and hardwork; that is the way we can build a viable nation,” he said.
President Akufo-Addo reiterated the government’s commitment to overcome the pandemic and urged Ghanaians to put their shoulders to the wheel to help combat the spread of the virus.
Stakeholders at the meeting also discussed how the financial sector can support the pharmaceutical companies to increase their production of the basic items needed to address the pandemic.
BY YAW KYEI
