By Momodou Jarju
The World Bank has procured two medical waste management machines for The Gambia worth over fifty-one million dalasis, the health minister Dr. Amadou Samateh disclosed at the national assembly in Banjul on Wednesday.
The minister said the machines are industrial types with very big capacity to be able to process medical waste in the country.
“This is part of support they are giving to us during the times of Covid-19 and this is at the tune of 850, 000 US dollars.”
“There is a smaller one that is costing 150, 000 dollars which is going to be stationed at the Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital. It is also on the way,” the minister told lawmakers.
The amount for both machines is $1000, 000 and this is D51, 610, 000 as per the dollar-dalasis exchange rate pegged at 51.61 per dalasi.
He said they want to locate the huge machine (the one costing $850, 000) at a central location in the country to give access to all and sundry, especially where there is concentration of the health centers.
Minister Samateh said the big machine is already at the Ports and they are putting up the sites where it is going to be located.
He added: “So medical wastes management in this country is being dealt with.”
