The Cross River Government is set to deploy digital medical drones to hard-to-reach areas of the state to supply drugs and other medical essentials.
To this effect, the government is partnering with a drone delivery company, Zipline.
Speaking on Monday during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the company officials in Calabar, Gov. Ben Ayade said that Cross River was playing a special role in the health sector.
Ayade said: “In 90 days, we will start the delivery of essential drugs to hard-to-reach areas facilitated by drone delivery systems”.
The governor assured the company of the necessary support to carry out their assignment in the state.
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He said that the company would be a major stakeholder in quality healthcare delivery in the state, especially when the state-owned pharmaceutical company, Calapharm, starts running.
“We need to have them across the three Senatorial Districts to guarantee that from point of dispatch to point of delivery, we should be able to do 30 minutes per package,” Ayade said.
Responding, Zipline’s Senior Vice President, Mr. Daniel Marfo, commended Ayade’s strides in the health sector and pledged his company’s commitment to sustaining the tempo.
Earlier, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Betta Edu, described the drone delivery system as a game-changer.
Edu said the drones would ensure that medical supplies, drugs, vaccines could be delivered to health centers in real-time and in the shortest possible time so that people could get help when they needed it the most.
