The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) on Friday presented 25 anatomic model and medical equipment valued at 250,000 dollars, to the Ministry of Health for distribution to 20 Midwifery Training Institutions in the country.

The items included birthing station simulator, steam sterilizer, advance nursing mannequin male, simulator gynecologic, sphygmomanometer pediatric, scanner ultrasound portable set, dual sex torso, sphygmomanometer adult, and midwifery kit

Others were, breast examination models, infant patient care, maternal and neonatal birthing simulator, artificial human skeleton, demonstration model of childbirth, foetus for vacuum extraction, full visibility goggles, and model pelvic organs.

Mr Alban Bagbin, Minister for Health, received the items at the Central Medical Stores in Tema on behalf of the institutions, and expressed his gratitude to the UNFPA for the donation.

He said it would contribute to the efforts being made to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Four and Five, which aimed at providing adequate maternal and reproductive care.

Mr Bagbin said there was the need for more of such logistical support from organizations such as the UNFPA, to help Ghana achieve the target goal of the MDGs.

He charged authorities of the beneficiary midwifery institutions to use the equipment efficiently, to help turn out skilful midwives, disclosing that the MOH would send a team to evaluate the impact of the equipment on the institutions.

Prior to the presentation, the sector minister toured the Tema Central Medical Stores where over three million bundles of mosquito nets and other medical logistics were being kept.

The Minister said it was better to distribute the mosquito nets to the needed areas now, especially in the rainy season, which creates more breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

He said there was no need to keep the nets in the warehouse until a targeted programme termed the ‘hang up programme’ took off, adding that the continuous keeping of the nets would create a shortage in the public domain.

Mr Bagbin urged the warehouse authorities to alert the Agencies in charge of collecting the items, to collect them for supply to the designated areas; pointing out that the Malaria Control Programme cannot physically go into every home to hang the net, and therefore they must be distributed now.

Dr Bernard Coquelin, Country Representative of the UNFPA, presenting the items, said the issue of using overused equipment to teach at the midwifery institutions came to his outfit’s notice during a visit to some of the schools in the company of the First Lady Mrs Naadu Mills.

Dr Coquelin said that, apart from helping in the proper training of midwives, the equipment will also help in safeguarding maternal mortality in Ghana.

He added that UNFPA was working with International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) to invest in globally equipping midwives with the needed skills.**