Another Commendable Step

The signing on Thursday 27 August 2020 at the Prime Minister’s Office of a public-private partnership agreement to provide Universal Health coverage scheme in Cameroon is one more decisive step in the desire to see citizens live a dignified life. Since 2011, the project has been in the pipeline and each time something happens around the health concerns of the population, many people open their ears as if to ask what else the new development will bring.     
Thus, when the Minister of Public Health, Manaounda Malachie on the behalf of Government and the Director General of SANTE UNIVERSELLE CAMEROUN SA, (SOCAM SA), Jacqueline Mekongo signed an accord in the presence of Prime Minister Head of Government, Joseph Dion Ngute it marked a significant step in efforts to match words with actions. In addition, Jacqueline Mekongo cited her South Korean partners GK Engineering and Development as being set to build a Data Centre to enable SOCAM SA meet its obligations. The message could already make those who are eager for results to start thinking of when they will enjoy the fruits of the Presidential promise. 
While waiting for the government and its SOCAM SA partner to unfold a detailed roadmap of how the Universal Health Scheme will look like for the next 15 years that the company intends to accompany government, it is essential that those involved should bear in mind the prescriptions of the President of the Republic in meeting the health aspirations of the population.      
President Paul Biya gave a hint on his determination to ensure that this Seven-year tenure of “Greater Opportunities” should produce more results for the citizens when he declared on 6 November 2018 in his swearing-in speech that he would work to; “Enhance our health system by building new hospitals and finalizing an efficient social security system.” Prior to the 2018 Presidential election, the Head of State had already announced plans to improve the health care system in the country. He disclosed in his State-of-the Nation’s addressed on 31 December, 2017 that;  “Our country’s health map is getting denser each year, with the construction of about one hundred health centres, subdivisional medical centres and district hospitals. We will continue our efforts to provide quality and universal health care to our population. In this regard, I have instructed the Government to finalize discussions on ways to progressively establish a universal health coverage system.”  Progressively, therefore the measures are being put in place. The fact that the year 2020 has come with an unprecedented health challenge in the form of the Coronavirus pandemic that has terrified the whole world has not dampened the forward match of health care provision efforts in the country. Rather, the situation has called for strengthened efforts in ensuring that everyone should be able to meet their basic health needs.      
Consequently, the burden will not only be that th...