The 8th Ordinary Session of Health Administrators of West African Colleges opened recently at the Paradise Suites Hotel in Kololi.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Fatim Badjie, said administrators and officers of West African colleges, namely the West African college of physicians, the West African college of surgeons, the West African postgraduate college of pharmacists and the West African college of nursing, are all implementing agencies of the West African health organization.
Minister Badjie emphasised the objectives of the meeting, which she said is to review the activities of the colleges, and their relevance to the health needs of the countries and the importance of taking these needs into consideration in planning programmes and activities.
Minister Badjie stressed that they should take into consideration the clinical deficits such as counterfeit and illicit medicines trade with the various clinical effects, malaria, HIV/AIDS, TB and other infectious diseases.
“We should deliberate on strategies to decrease the high incidence of maternal and infant mortality and morbidity, sight failure due to malnutrition, infections and improper health care,” she said.
The health minister said further: “We should put in place programmes that encourage good sanitation and structures that facilitate access to potable water supply for the sub-urban and rural communities.”
According to Hon. Badjie, the West African Health Organization is doing a lot in human resources development and capacity building.
She was however quick to stress that a lot more still needs to be done for these efforts to have impact on the motivation and retention of the health workforce.
Dr Beson Bah, representing the president of the West African Colleges of Physicians, also talked on the importance of the meeting to West African countries.