The Sindh government has approved a proposal for the establishment of a 200-bed children's hospital in Sukkur. The facility will be built with the assistance of the Korean government at a cost of $57.274 million. Besides, the provincial government also approved the reconstruction of Chandka Medical College (CMC) Hospital, Larkana and DHQ Sujawal, for which the Korean government has committed to providing a $300 million soft loan.This was decided in a meeting between representatives of the Sindh government, led by Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and a delegation of the Korean Exim Bank, headed by its DG, Um Sung Young, senior officer Koh Myungseong and administrative secretary Saud Hussain Kahlon. The chief minister was assisted by the health minister Dr Azra Pechuho, Planning and Development Chairperson Nahid Shah, Finance Secretary Hassan Naqvi, Education Secretary Ahsan Mangi, Health Secretary Zahid Memon and Health Special Secretary Dr Dabir.During the meeting, the provincial government approved the scheme for the establishment of the Children's Health Care Institute, Sukkur. The scheme was earlier approved by the Central Development Working Party and the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council in 2015, but the project was halted for want of funds. The Sindh government negotiated with the Korean government, which has agreed to provide a soft loan of $46 million for the project, while the provincial government has allocated the remaining amount. The total cost of the project stands at Rs5 billion.The hospital would be established over an area of 27 acres on Airport Road, Sukkur. It will feature a Neonatal Care Unit (NCU), Emergency Blood Transfusion Unit, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), pediatric surgeries and OT department, efficient patient transportation system, enhancement of pediatric special medical services, special OPD for ophthalmology and an ENT unit.Dr Pechuho told the chief minister that the bidding document for engaging the contractor had been completed. She added that the contractor would be hired very soon and the work would be completed by the end of 2021.The chief minister said that the Chandka Medical College Hospital, Larkana, is housed in an old building, therefore he wanted to reconstruct the hospital building. He added that the newly-created district of Sujawal needed a District Headquarter Hospital, which he also wanted to construct. He requested the Korean authorities to extend a $254 million loan so that both these hospitals could be established.The Korean delegation said that their government has already approved a $300 million loan, against which they were allocating $46 million for the facility in Sukkur and the reaming amount of $254 million could be given to the CMCH in Larkana and the Sujawal DHQ.The chief minister directed the health department to submit the necessary documentation to the Korean Bank so that the soft loan could be released at the earliest.Published in The Express Tribune, November 12, 2019.