A Company Uses Puntland Health Ministry Covid-19 Testing Equipment

[Deeq A.]

Garowe (PP News Desk) — Puntland Ministry of Health has intervened to reduce the Covid-19 testing fees. Last week Puntland Post reported that the Ministry of Health charges $68 for Covid-19 test per person.

The receipt issued to one person travelling from Garowe bears the logo of neither Puntland Health Ministry nor the company allegedly using the Ministry’s Covid-19 testing equipment.

The Health Ministry of Puntland State posted a statement in the Facebook page of the Health Ministry to state the “Covid-19 test for people travelling costs $50 per person. The fee covers running costs of the laboratory.”

The climb-down of Puntland Health Ministry indicates the dubious nature of the contract awarded to a private company administering Covid-19 tests and using the Ministry of Health Covid-19 equipment donated to Puntland State by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

In May U.S. Mission to Somalia donated equipments to Puntland-based Covid-19 public labs.

The Health Ministry of Puntland State did not investigate overcharging for Covid-19 tests for travellers nor has it clarified who uses the equipment at the premises owned by the Health Ministry. Tendering procedures oblige the Health Ministry to publish tendering information if the Ministry decides to outsource a service.

In May the US Mission to Somalia donated “IT equipment and furniture to COVID-19 testing labs and isolation centers in Garowe and Bosaaso. The provision of the equipment will ensure samples are not damaged while being processed for testing, and enhance the operational efficiency and effectiveness of the testing labs.”

Puntland Health Ministry climb-down: The fee covers the running costs of the laboratory.

The receipt issued to one person for a Covid-19 test shows a fee of $68 but does not bear the logo of either the Puntland Ministry of Health or the private company allegedly providing Covid-19 tests for people travelling from Puntland State.

© Puntland Post, 2020

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