Construction of the K839 million paying clinic at Kasungu District Hospital has completed, raising hope for improved healthcare service delivery in the district.
The clinic which has been constructed as part of an income generation drive for Kasungu District Council, has been funded through Performance Based Grant (PBG) under the World Bank supported Governance to Enable Service Delivery (GESD) Project.
Director of Health Services for Kasungu, Emmanuel Golombe said in an interview on Thursday that with the construction works completed, the council will be looking for funds to purchase furniture and equipment so that the facility becomes operational.
“We expect the facility to become operational mid this year. What is remaining is the purchasing of equipment and furniture which would cost us around K300 million,” Golombe said.
He said the project is a response to a growing demand for quality healthcare paying services in the district.
“There is a section of the community which would be rushing to work and not willing to spend long hours on the queue at the hospital. They would rather go to a paying facility which is less congested.
“Some need specialized services which may not be available. In that case, they go to Lilongwe. So our mission is to also reach such people with services suiting their requirements,” he said.
Golombe added that the project will also help generate revenue for the operations of the entire district hospital, supplementing funds for purchasing drugs and paying utility bills.
The director of Finance at Kasungu District Council, Solomon Nkundika, said the council is exploring ways to generate more local revenue so that it can properly serve the people.
“The paying clinic is one of those efforts. We are also trying to improve our collections in the markets to have enough funds to give the people quality services,” he said.
Senior Planning Officer for National Local Government Finance Committee, Charity Kaunda expressed satisfaction with the quality of the project, emphasizing that councils have a responsibility to deliver quality services.
“We desire to see that the council is utilising the resources that they get under PBG to address the community service gaps, implementing projects that can stand the test of time and be implemented to the desired quality by adhering to specifications and completed within the given timelines,” Kaunda said.
Magie Chawinga, a resident of Mayadi Township expressed excitement about the project saying for a long time, there has been a gap of such services in the district.
