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Qatar, UGMC support 35 needy children to undergo heart surgeries
Dr Darius Osei right and Abdulaziz Jassim Hejji,Director of Programmes
and International Development,Qatar Charity at the programme.
At least 35 needy children suffering from congenital heart diseases have undergone surgeries at the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC).
Congenital heart diseases are abnormalities in the heart that develop before birth.
The beneficiaries, aged between three months and 17 years, had the surgeries within a period of one week and it ends today, August 12, 2023.
The operation is expected to cost about $3,000 to $5,000.
The programme, sponsored by Qatar Charity, an International Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), was in collaboration with UGMC.
Launching the programme in Accra, the Country Director of Qatar Charity, Mr Hassan Owda, noted that the UGMC had facilities to start the programme to pave way for more children to be given treatment.
He said that Qatar Charity had since 2018 implemented projects in water and sanitation, health, culture, education, economic and housing, among others.
Mr Owda stressed the need to maintain good relationship with the Qatar charity and UGMC for more collaboration in the future.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of UGMC, Dr Darius Osei, said the initiative would promote an exchange programme among doctors and nurses of Qatar charity and UGMC.
He also noted the initiative would support needy children who were burdened with the cost of treatment, and called on the health practitioners to offer their support to the operations.
Mr Darius Osei commended officials of the Qatar Charity for the initiatives and assured them of thier continious support to help them achieve thier goals.
Qatar Charity was established in 1992 for the development and sustainability of needy communities.
Almost over four decades, Qatar Charity has grown to become one of the largest humanitarian and developmental organisations in the world, providing lifesaving assistance to those hit by conflicts, persecution and natural disasters, and creating durable solutions to poverty using sustainable development programmes.
By Anita Nyarko-Yirenkyi
Ghana Tourism Authority is leading Ghana’s participation at ITB Berlin, which opened in Berlin with a vibrant national pavilion highlighting Ghana’s rich cultural heritage, tourism destinations and investment opportunities.
March 5 has been designated as Ghana Day, a special platform to promote Ghana’s languages, cuisine, Kente, festivals and business prospects to the global tourism community. The stand has already drawn strong interest with traditional arts and crafts displays, immersive multimedia presentations and popular Ghanaian snacks.
Seven private-sector players are exhibiting alongside government officials as part of efforts to deepen trade partnerships, expand market access, and attract investment across the hospitality, heritage tourism, ecotourism, and creative arts sectors.
Ahead of the official opening, the Ghana delegation also engaged young Ghanaian investors in Germany in collaboration with V Afrika-Verein and the Ghana Embassy, strengthening diaspora investment linkages and highlighting opportunities within the tourism value chain.
Ghana’s coordinated presence at ITB Berlin 2026 reinforces its strategy to position the country as the Gateway to Africa and a competitive destination for leisure travel and global investment.
The Member of Parliament for Nsawam Adoagyiri, Frank Annoh Dompreh, has expressed concern over delays in the release of the District Assemblies Common Fund, warning that the situation is stalling development across the country.
On his facebook page, he described as a matter of urgent national importance, the Minority Chief Whip pointed to what he sees as a growing crisis of unpaid contractors, abandoned projects, and halted infrastructure works in many districts.
He noted that several communities are grappling with half completed schools, unfinished health facilities, abandoned markets, deteriorating roads, and stalled sanitation projects.
According to him, many contractors who have executed projects for district assemblies have not been paid, forcing some construction firms to demobilise from sites while workers lose their jobs.
He stressed that the District Assemblies Common Fund is not a discretionary allocation but a constitutional requirement under Article 252 of the 1992 Constitution, intended to support development at the local level.
In his view, years of delayed releases and accumulated arrears have weakened district development financing and disrupted projects meant to improve living conditions in communities.
He further argued that some payments made in recent years were largely the settlement of old debts rather than funding for new or ongoing projects, a situation he believes has affected contractor confidence and local economic activity.
He described the issue as more than a budgetary challenge, characterising it as a development emergency and a governance concern.
He therefore urged the appropriate authorities to pay outstanding DACF arrears, settle contractors who have completed their work, and ensure that transfers to districts are automatic and predictable.
He maintained that decentralisation can only succeed when district assemblies receive adequate and timely funding to carry out development projects.
He emphasised that stalled projects directly affect ordinary citizens, since they rely on such infrastructure for education, healthcare, transportation, sanitation, and economic activities.
He called for renewed attention to grassroots development, insisting that national progress should not be concentrated only in major cities but extended to all communities.
By: Jacob Aggrey
