The ministry of health in South Sudan’s Eastern Equatoria state ministry of health, in collaboration with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) Wednesday launched the construction of a maternity ward and staff quarters at Moli Primary Health Care Centre (PHCC) in Moli payam of Magwi County.
The USD 50,000 project under the UNMISS Quick Impact Project is expected to be completed within three months. The building has two blocks with the maternity having 3 rooms while the staff quarters has two rooms respectively
Moli PHCC, one of the oldest health centers in the area, has survived with only one ward with three beds for all medical needs in the payam.
Tibi Joseph, the clinical officer in charge at Moli PHCC welcomed the project and appealed to UNMISS and other partners to provide the center with electricity.
“We don’t have the power system in this facility and it is difficult to handle patients at night without power. There is also a need for protection, this facility needs to be fenced for the protection of staff,” Joseph lamented. “We have few staff, there is a need to increase the technical staff especially in Moli Tokuro we have one registered midwife, one lab technician, two vaccinators, two community health workers.”
UNMISS head of field office in Torit, Caroline Waudo, believes the facility will help Moli Tokuro residents and returnees.
“I want to say that the implementation of this project aims to play a very key role improving reproductive health for women in this community and address women peace and security issues as stipulated in the Security Council Resolution 1325 which seeks to improve and ensure increased access to basic maternal and child health care services to host communities, returnees, and the neighboring communities so that they can integrate into the community and live in dignity towards the promotion of protection, conflict prevention, reintegration mediation, and peacebuilding,” she said.
Eastern Equatoria state minister for health Lodai Pasqal appreciated UNMISS and appealed to the community and local authorities in the area to continue supervising the work to bring about the desired goals.