The Ministry of Health (MoH) has  urged calm amidst the delays in clearing 120 containers of tuberculosis and malaria medicines at Tema port.

The Public Relations Officer, Isaac Offei Baah, in an interview on Adom FM’s morning show, Dwaso Nsem said the Health Minister, Dr Bernard Okoe must be trusted to do the needful.

“I will plead that we give Dr Okoe Boye the benefit of the doubt that he will clear all the containers at the port because a series of meetings were held yesterday and with what he wants to do today, we are optimistic the containers will be cleared,” he said.

This comes in response to a threat from the Global Fund to terminate support to Ghana due to the delayed clearance of the medications that arrived in the country in October 2023.

According to the fund, despite assurances from the government, a portion of the shipments remain stuck at the port and can expire.

In April, the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) announced it had secured the tax waivers to enable it to clear the drugs after months of delay.

However, demurrages and third-party charges are amounting to seven million cedis which must be paid.

Due to this debt, about 120 containers are still stuck at the port.

However, Mr Offei has assured that there has been some commitment from the Ministry of Finance, adding some 30 containers have been cleared to reduce the 120.

He also allayed fears that Global Fund will terminate its support, stating there has been communication on the challenges the process have been faced with.

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