Former Presidential Advisor on Health, Dr Anthony Nsiah-Asare, has dismissed suggestions that the previous administration neglected existing health facilities in favour of Agenda 111, insisting that many of the newly constructed hospitals are ready to begin operations.

Responding to claims that resources should have been used to complete projects such as the Afari Military Hospital and Sewua Regional Hospital instead of launching Agenda 111, Dr. Nsiah-Asare argued that the programme was a strategic intervention aimed at addressing longstanding gaps in healthcare infrastructure across the country.

Speaking on JoyNews The Pulse on Wednesday, he said the Agenda 111 initiative was financed through a combination of COVID-19 funds and petroleum revenues allocated through the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA), rather than through borrowing.

He noted that the programme was designed to provide district hospitals in underserved areas, regional hospitals in the newly created regions, and specialised psychiatric facilities to improve access to healthcare nationwide.

Dr Nsiah-Asare further stated that "some Agenda 111 hospitals have already been completed and commissioned, with medical equipment installed and facilities awaiting operationalisation."

“The hospitals are there. The equipment has been installed and tested. If the government says there are over 100,000 health workers yet to be employed, then they should recruit some of them and operationalise these facilities,” he argued.

He maintained that Agenda 111 remains one of the most significant healthcare infrastructure projects undertaken in the country and said the focus should now be on ensuring completed hospitals become fully functional to serve the public.

Dr Nsiah-Asare's comments come amid renewed debate over the state of health infrastructure in the Ashanti Region, including calls for the immediate operationalisation of the Afari Military Hospital and the Sewua Regional Hospital.