First Lady, Mrs. Rebecca Akufo-Addo, has called for increased collaboration among key stakeholders in the health sector in a concerted effort towards achieving universal health coverage.

According to her, working with two foundations, the Rebecca Foundation and the Infanta Malaria Prevention Foundation has informed her of the effectiveness of such partnerships and coalitions.

The first lady made the call at the opening of the First Maternal Child Health and Nutrition Conference held in Accra yesterday.

In her keynote address, the first lady said: “I am glad that both the Infanta Malaria Prevention Foundation and the Rebecca Foundation, are part of a community of organisations with a shared objective of achieving universal health coverage in reproductive, newborn, child and adolescent health and nutrition.”
She called on participants to be reminded that the subject of focus that is reproductive, newborn child health and nutrition remains core health concerns.

She also asked all to be reminded that the effective management of proven interventions and programmes, is a sure way, to reduce the prevailing burden of maternal, newborn and child illnesses and deaths.

On early childhood development, the first lady stated that every Ghanaian child must not only survive, but be provided everything needed to ensure their total physical, emotional and cognitive development. I urge all of us to give this due consideration in our deliberations.

Citing a general improvement of health of the Ghanaian populace, she attributed it partly to the considerable increase in coverage of services to vulnerable groups such as antenatal care, access to skilled care during delivery, and babies being put to the breast immediately after delivery.

However, she bemoaned the fact that a large number of children, young adolescents and women, continue to die or live with disabilities mostly from preventable causes” and called for more work to be done.

She charged the participants to be mindful of the fact that health service delivery must be client-centered.

She commended health sector players, including the Ghana Health Service, Ministry of Health, health partners and other stakeholders and called on them who continue to commit to protecting the lives of Ghanaians.