The Director and staff of the Navrongo Health Research Centre were among a host of guests at the Twenty Fifth Anniversary celebrations of the Kintampo Health Research Centre (KHRC) on 25th February 2020 at the premises of the Centre.
The event, which was a durbar to climax a year-long celebration of the Anniversary, was well attended by government officials, traditional rulers and Imams and staff of the KHRC. Also in attendance were research collaborators from within and outside the country, representatives from sister research centres and a cross section of the public.
Established in 1994, after the success story of the Navrongo Health Research Centre in research that has improved health care delivery in the northern part of the country, the Kintampo Health Research Centre caters for the research needs of middle belt of Ghana. The Dodowa Health Research Centre is the other centre under the Research and Development Division of the Ghana Health Service serving the southern sector of the country.
Having proved to be very capable in the field of research, the Director of the Kintampo Health Research Centre, Dr. Kwaku Poku Asante appealed to government to support the research centres in Ghana carry out their mandate. He asked for some logistics in the form of laboratory equipment and transportation among others to be made available to the centres to improve the work of the centres. Dr. Asante spoke about the significant contributions that Kintampo Health Research Centre has made to improve the health sector. He mentioned the conduct of phase II and III trials of the RTSS malaria vaccine between 2007 and 2014 at the centre, which has resulted in WHO coordinated malaria Vaccine Implementation programme (MVIP), currently ongoing in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi.
The Regional Director of Health Services, Dr. Kofi Issah who gave the keynote address on behalf of the Minister of Health lauded the achievements of the Kintampo Health Research Centre since its inception. He was particularly grateful that the works of the KHRC has improved the lives of the people in that part of the country and encouraged the management and staff of the centre to work even harder in bringing down the burden of disease in Ghana through more research. Whilst congratulating the management and staff of the Kintampo Health Research Centre on the occasion of their Twenty Fifth Anniversary, the minister promised to support the centre to achieve its mandate and improve the lives of Ghanaians.
The Regional Minister of Bono East, Hon Kofi Amoakohene, who gave a statement at the ceremony, also congratulated the centre for its achievements and good works. He promised further collaboration with the centre and other health institutions in the region to improve the lives of the people in the region.
Other activities that took place included presentation of awards to deserving staff of the centre, cutting of an anniversary cake, popping of champagne and the unveiling of a new building to mark the anniversary.
The durbar was chaired by Dr. Kwabena Opoku Adusei, Director, College of Health and Welbeing, Kintampo.