Funding crisis to affect new Nkhata  Bay hospital opening

The commissioning of the modern Nkhata Bay District Hospital may take longer than expected if Ministry of Finance does not source special funding for running the hospital, Ministry of Health officials have warned.

However, Ministry of Finance has urged Ministry of Health to utilise funds allocated to the current hospital, saying the newly built hospital being new and having solar facilities will help cut running costs.

Speaking in an interview on Tuesday, Ministry of Health spokesperson Adrian Chikumbe said the current funding levels were not adequate to operate the new hospital which has more facilities than the old one.

Nkhata Bay district health officer (DHO) Albert Mkandawire also said the district cannot run the new Nkhata Bay District Hospital with the current budget.

But Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Development spokesperson Nations Msowoya said it was premature to underrate the budget before experiencing the cost of running the new hospital.

The new Nkhata Bay District Hospital has 360 beds compared to 150 for the old one, operating theatres and intensive care unit (ICU) among other facilities.