The Sikkens National Health Insurance Foundation has undertaken a series of philanthropic activities in the Afram Plains area for vulnerable populations.
The gesture, according to the Head of the foundation, Kwame Ofosu Bamfo, was to bridge the “critical gaps in healthcare delivery for the poor, the aged and other disadvantaged groups”.
Mr Ofosu Bamfo, who is also the Managing Director of Sikkens Ghana and Alisa Hotels, explained that the objective of his charity project was to ensure that vulnerable people were not denied access to health care because of financial hardship.
He consequently renewed the foundation’s commitment to helping vulnerable populations, particularly in relation to access to health care.
Lifeline
For more than 10 years, the SIKKENS National Health Insurance Foundation, instituted by Mr Ofosu Bamfo, has been a lifeline for thousands of vulnerable residents in the Kwahu Afram Plains North and South districts of the Eastern Region.
“Working in close collaboration with the Afram Plains Development Organisation (APDO), the foundation has offered sustained and targeted support to communities that have historically been underserved. Its contributions have not only eased the financial burden of healthcare access, but have also strengthened community health systems through education and facility support,” a statement issued by the foundation said.
Over the years, the foundation has supported more than 15,500 vulnerable individuals, including children, to either register or renew their membership with the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
“In a region where poverty, geographic isolation, and limited infrastructure impede access to essential services, this intervention has been transformative,” it said.
Many beneficiaries, particularly the elderly, single mothers, persons with disability, and households with fragile incomes, have been able to seek health care without the fear of prohibitive costs.
Residents who previously delayed or avoided treatment due to financial constraints now confidently visit health facilities, leading to early treatment of illnesses and reduced mortality rates.
Community leaders across the Afram Plains have since lauded the Sikkens initiative for restoring dignity and hope to households that would otherwise have remained outside the national health safety net.
Further support
Beyond supporting individuals to register for health insurance, the foundation had also extended assistance to some health facilities.
It included provision of mattresses to a newly constructed maternity block of the Amankwakrom Health Centre, completion and furnishing of an abandoned staff bungalow at Tease Health Centre at GH¢850,000 to accommodate the resident medical officer and the matron.
In conjunction with the Royal Club of Tease, the foundation had also drilled four boreholes for the community, with plans to drill four more to enhance access to safe water.
The foundation also provided prosthetics and other devices to amputees.
