Aceh needs Rp300b for health service

Aceh needs Rp300b for health service

BANDA ACEH, Aceh: The Aceh Nanggroe Darussalam province badly needs Rp 300 billion to provide health services to its poor residents, an official said here on Wednesday.

Provincial health office deputy head Haniff Asmara said that 45 percent of the province's total population of 4.3 million was poor.

"We assume that in a developing country with an average poverty rate of 15 percent (of the total population), each citizen needs to be allocated Rp 32,000 annually," Haniff said.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the minimum health allocation level is the equivalent of Rp 41,000 per capita per year.

"The health spending for Acehnese is Rp 201.9 billion this year. The money was allocated from the state budget and the provincial budget. The amount is too small to cover all health- related problems," Haniff said. --Antara