Akim-Oda(E/R), Feb. 20, GNA - Major Courage Quashigah (Rtd), Minister for Health on Monday observed that people in good health could save money and have the strength to work and create wealth. He noted that Ghana could not develop with a life expectancy of 57 years and when 68 children of every 1000 life births die before their first anniversary.

Major Quashigah made the observation when addressing the opening session of a week's training of trainers workshop on the regenerative health and nutrition programme for 80 participants at Akim Oda. The participants included students from second cycle institutions, matrons of schools, Assembly Members, health workers and Heads of Departments in the Birim South District.

He said despite the importance of health to the development of society, there was nothing in the school curriculum to make children learn more about their health and how to live a more healthy life. Major Quashigah said regenerative health and nutrition programme could contribute to the country's development some issues such as provision of potable water and good sanitation were outside his Ministry.

Major Quashigah said some local foods when given to children could help improve their intellectual capacity and information on them were available to most nutritionists in the country but they had failed to educate the people on them.

Dr Ebenezer Appiah-Denkyirah, Eastern Regional Director of Health Services, said most of the diseases affecting Ghanaians were related to their lifestyles and urged health officials to be more concerned with preventive medicine than curative medicine.

Dr Yaw Otchere, Birim South District Director of Health Services, said the district recorded 20 maternal deaths in 2006 and eight by mid-February this year.

He said a major problem facing the district was most of the pregnant women dying before their ninth month. Dr Otchere said last year, the district established five new CHIPs centres and appealed to the Ministry of Health to supply furniture and equipment to make them functional. Mr Prince Immanuel Ben-Yehuda, Leader of African Hebrew Development Agency Team from Israel, said most diseases affecting people in the country were preventable and could be solved by a change in their lifestyle.

He urged the people to eat nutritious diet produced locally. Mr Ben-Yehuda said similar training programmes had been organized in Asikuma-Odobin-Brakwa and Amasaman and the next town would be Hohoe in the Volta Region. He said Ghana was the only country that had adopted the programme as a national policy but some countries like South Africa had sent delegations to study the system in Dimona, Isreal. 20 Feb. 07