The Ghana Nurses and Midwives Trainees Association (GNMTA) has petitioned the government to urgently address the critical issue of their allowances which have not been paid for over a year.
Signed by its President, Pascal Adumbisa, the petition noted that despite frantic efforts to get the government to resolve the issue, to date no resolution has been achieved yet regarding the payment of trainee nurses and midwives’ allowances.
Mr Adumbisa said the prolonged delay in payment has exacerbated the hardships faced by the trainees who depend on these allowances for their education and well-being.
President Nana Akufo-Addo in 2017 launched the restoration of the Nurses and Midwifery trainee allowances in Sunyani, in fulfilment of his 2016 electioneering campaign.
“But for over a year now, midwives and nurses have not received their allowances. We received an allowance in March. That was for three months and these three months that came in March were for 2022, not 2023. 2021, they made payments for September, October and November but June and December for 2021 were not paid, that is for those who just completed,” the petition explained.
He said the fallout from this egregious failure by the government is already evident, as trainee nurses and midwives face severe financial hardships, hindering their ability to focus fully on their essential training and achieving the highest levels of expertise in their field.
“This failure he intimated presents a major setback not only for the trainees themselves but for the entire healthcare sector of Ghana,” it added.
Mr Adumbisa further reiterated the importance of the allowance saying it plays a crucial role in supporting nurse and midwife trainees in Ghana, particularly during their practicums.
He said it cushions them against exorbitant expenditures, ensuring that trainees can fully focus on their practical training without financial stress.
He added that failure on the part of government to heed their demands to pay their allowances would amount to undermining the motivation and dedication of the trainees, which could ultimately have a detrimental impact on the entire healthcare system.
“We call upon the government to rectify this injustice without further delay, to restore faith in its commitment to the healthcare sector, and to re-establish its role as a responsible custodian of the nation’s future healthcare professionals,” the President of GNMTA stressed.
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