The Principal of the Gushegu Midwifery Training School, Hajia Lukaya Alhassan has reminded the government to fulfill its promise of constructing three unit classroom block, an administrative block, a library and an ICT laboratory.
The school, the principal said, was bedeviled with accommodation problems posing serious challenge for the authorities to ensure decent accommodation for students.
Hajia Lukaya mentioned the lack of tutors, inadequacy of classrooms/offices, accommodation for both students and tutors and the lack of a school bus as some of the major challenges facing the school.
She stated this during the first Matriculation and swearing-in of an eight member advisory board at Gushegu. The ceremony was the first of its kind in three years to be held on the school premises.
The Northern Regional Minister, Alhaji Mohammed-Muniru Limuna on the 12th of May, 2015 on a working visit promised the construction of the facilities, but that promise is yet to see the light of day seven months after his visit.
The ceremony was on the theme; “Reducing Maternal Mortality; the Role of the Health Training Institutions ”.
Hajia Lukaya also used the opportunity to appeal to government, NGOs and other benevolent organizations to, as a matter of importance, contribute to the development of the school.
She also called on the government to grant a financial clearance to the college to recruit tutors and support staff to facilitate the day-to-day academic and administrative works.
The college has no single person from its temporary staff mechanized on to the Controller and Accountant General’s department payroll. The situation has compelled school authorities to use its little Internal Generated Funds (IGF) to pay the temporary staff.
The school, which was established in September 2012 and commissioned by President John Dramani Mahama, aims to improve maternal and child health as well as to reduce the mortality rate.
It first started as a post basic midwifery training college by the Ministry of Health, with support from the Gushegu District Assembly and the GETFUND.
The school started its post basic midwifery program in 2012 with 31 students but can now boast of 297 students. It comprises 47 post basic midwifery students, 84 basic registered midwifery students with eight tutors and three part-time tutors.
Hajia Lukaya commended the district Chief Executive for the area, Alhaji Alhassan Fuseini for his effort that led to the establishment of the school.
The District Health Director of Gushegu, Alhaji A.B Yakubu revealed that even though the world mortality rate has declined by 45 percent since 1990, some eight hundred women still die every day from pregnancy or child birth related causes.
He outlined severe bleeding and obstructed labour as some the causes of maternal death.