SIG & PRC sign agreement for construction of new state of the art NRH Comprehensive Medical Centre

A landmark signing between the Solomon Islands Government and the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) this morning will see the construction of the multimillion National Referral Hospital’s Comprehensive Medical Centre early year.

The new CMC is a state of art that will provide first class medical service—that’s currently not available at the NRH. The new centre which is described as a one stop shop for health will have facilities to deal with all non-communicable and communicable diseases will be dealt with here.

Secretary to the Prime Minister and medical doctor Dr. Jimmy Rodgers told SBMonline that it will lift the hospital to a new level to do the things we mostly refer to overseas to be done here.

A delighted Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare who witnessed the signing unscored that the PRC support has further strengthened the two countries’ three years old bilateral relationship.

The agreement will now see tendering process for the centre and work will start in early 2023 and the CMC will be completed in 16 months.

Sogavare said heart and renal diseases are amongst the leading cause of death and is amongst the NCD diseases that contribute between seven to eight out of every ten deaths in the country.

“I can’t thank you enough,”” Sogavare said against the background that the new centre will help deal with the problem.

He added once completed the centre will deal with these diseases. This includes its diagnose and providing options for treatment.

Sogavare said the centre once completed will deal with patients with heart and kidney problems adding these are sicknesses that the government sends people to diagnosed overseas but with the centre they will be done in country.

PRC Ambassador to Solomon Islands, Li Ming said the Comprehensive Medical Center Project will be a brand new 4 floor building which covers the functions of outpatient service, diagnosis, surgical first aid and hospitalization, and also a Power Center in the service of the Medical Center.

“And this is not only an infrastructure project, we will also provide necessary medical equipment and furniture, two years of maintenance and personnel training. NCD is one of the top priorities in Solomon Islands. Upon completed, the Comprehensive Medical Center will significantly enhance the capacity of National Referral Hospital, especially to control and cure (NCD) non communicable diseases such as diabetes, cardiac disease by offering  professional medical service to patients from Honiara and all 9 provinces, and gradually help to improve national medical service level and research capacity,” he added.

The ambassador said in October 2019,  Sogavare paid a historic visit to China. During that visit the two countries signed an MOU on Economic and Technical Cooperation and reached consensus on several major projects, including 2023 Pacific Games Stadium Project, the biggest China-aid project in the Pacific, the SINU Dormitory Buildings Project which is also Games Village for 2023 Pacific Games, and the National Referral Hospital Comprehensive Medical Center Project.

Min said within a short period of three years, those projects have been implemented one after another, bringing all the bilateral consensus into reality of development in Solomon Islands, which will transform substantially the image of the whole country and create thousands of job opportunities for local workers.

Minister of health and medical services Dr Culwick Togamana signed on behalf of the government whist Gui Rui, Economic and Commercial Counselor, signed on behalf of the PRC.

 

News@SBMOnline2022