Dr Ebrahim Samba, the World Health Organisation (WHO), Regional Representative for Africa, on Saturday urged newly qualified doctors of the University of Ghana Medical School of the College of Health Sciences to stay in the country to help stem the massive exodus of medical professionals.

He said the WHO and the Commonwealth Secretariat were conducting studies into the "push and pull" factors responsible for the recruitment of health professionals to support the health systems of developed countries.

Dr Samba was speaking at the second congregation of the College, which houses all the medical training institutions of the University of Ghana.

Degrees and diplomas were conferred on over 600 doctors, dental surgeons and laboratory technologists of the medical and dental schools and the School of Allied Health of the College of Health Sciences.

New fellows of the West African Postgraduate Medical College were also presented to the Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Nana Wereko Ampem II.

Dr Samba said it was only Africans who could dedicate their lives to improving the lot of the continent, which was facing a host of problems including poverty, diseases such as malaria, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.

Concerning pressing health issues on the continent, he said malaria was largely responsible for Africa's poverty with the cost of curing the disease alone accounting for 12 billion dollars in economic loss.

Dr Samba used the occasion to pay tribute to the government of Ghana and the authorities of the University of Ghana, Legon, where he had his first degree in 1953.

The WHO African Representative, a Gambian with 47 years of medical career, said he owed a lot to Ghana where he had his secondary school education at Achimota having enter Ghana as a stowaway in 1949 and through a twist of fate running into one of Ghana's leaders, Dr Kofi Abrefa Busia who adopted him and sponsored his education.

The Reverend Professor Seth Ayettey, Provost of the College of Health Sciences, said the mission of the college was to produce highly qualified and competent health professionals to promote good health for all Ghanaians.

He said the college would soon be able to train specialists for all regional hospitals and this would help in the conversion of all regional hospitals into teaching ones.

He said it was the plan of the college to offer consultancy services so as to augment government's support.

Prof.Ayettey said the college was involved in the training of medical personnel for other African countries in partnership with the WHO.

Mr Ishmael Yamson, Chairman of the Council of the University of Ghana, said the college was established as part of a programme to decentralise the university to inject efficiency in the running of the educational institution.

He said the faculty of Agriculture and its research stations were being organised into a college and may therefore be the second college of the university.

Some newly qualified doctors were given prizes for academic excellence. They included Dr Alexander Yeboah, who took home various sums of cash prizes for being the best male students in obstetrician and gynaecology and Dr Fafa Xexemeku also took home similar cash prizes for being the best in clinical medicine.