Covid-19 testing at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) accrued a total amount of $17,359,500 between September and December 2020.
Frontiers Health Services, the company responsible for Covid-19 testing at the Airport paid an amount of $1,157,200 in royalties to the Ghana Airport Company Limited (GACL) out of the total accrued.
This was revealed by Transport Minister Kwaku Ofori Asiamah while answering questions from deputy minority leader James Kludze Avedzi standing in the name of Minority leader Haruna Iddrisu on the floor of Parliament.
The Transport Minister revealed the contract between the Ghana Airport Company Limited and Frontiers Health Services stipulated a sharing ratio of 10 to 140 dollars out of the $150 testing fee respectively.
“So the Frontier Health Service share was $140 while Ghana Airport Company’s share was 10 dollars. Mr Speaker, I want to inform this August House that from September to December 2020, the total amount realized from the Covid-19 testing at the Kotoka International Airport was $17,359,500.”
He added, “Per the contractual agreement, Ghana Airport Company was supposed to receive $10 of royalty per each test done, and Frontier Health Service was to keep the rest as their service charge. And the total cost for one test was 150 dollars”.
Mr. Asiamah explained the amount given to the GACL is royalties and not for the space rented by Frontiers Health Services for the testing. According to him the rent charges, utility bills are borne by Frontiers separately aside the royalties paid.
“As per the concession agreement, as stated earlier, Frontier Health Services retained $16,202,200 dollars from its services from September to December 2020. “The Ghana Airport Company Limited received $1,167,300 for the same period as royalties accruing from the Covid-19 testing”.
The $150 fee for the testing has however been reduced to $50 for Ghanaians and other ECOWAS citizens.
Source: Starrfm.com.gh/103.5fm/Ibrahim Alhassan
