Nthatuoa Koeshe
THE Ministry of Health will this year construct 30 primary health care posts in five districts as part of efforts to bring health services closer to communities, the ministry’s Director General, Nyane Letsie has said.
Dr Letsie said this during his recent appearance before the parliamentary Social Cluster Portfolio Committee in Maseru.
She said the construction of the health centres was in line with Lesotho’s vision to fulfil its 2030 Sustainable Development objective to achieving universal health coverage and access to safe, effective and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all.
Dr Letsie said the facilities would provide testing for HIV, diabetes and blood pressure so that communities would not need to travel far away from their homes for the services.
“We will build four health posts in Mokhotlong, four in Thaba Tseka, five in Quthing, six in Qacha’s Nek and 10 in Butha-Buthe,” Dr Letsie said.
“We believe that health posts should be in every electoral division because of the long distances that communities have to travel to health facilities,” she said, adding that the tendering process for contractors had already been done.
Dr Letsie said they also intended to revive existing facilities that have turned into white elephants while some would be turned into clinics.
In his recent budget speech, Finance Minister, Moeketsi Majoro, said the Ministry of Health was looking to achieve universal health coverage which was currently at 67 percent. He also said that life expectancy in the country was at 56 years.
He said the target was to achieve 100 percent health coverage by 2020 and this could be achieved by improving accessibility and affordability through the decentralisation of public health care.
“The focus is to build health posts across the country with the target of having at least one health post per electoral division.
“This will reduce long distance travel to health centres which is acute in the mountainous districts of Mokhotlong, Thaba Tseka, Qacha’s Nek, Quthing and parts of Mohale’s Hoek,” Dr Majoro said.
