By Linda Naa Deide Aryeetey, GNA
Accra, Feb. 27, GNA – Government has increased domestic financing for the health sector, with direct funding projected to account for 72 per cent of total health expenditure in 2026.
The figure represents a rise from 56.8 per cent in 2023, signalling a shift towards sustainable domestic health financing.
Delivering the State of the Nation Address in Parliament on Friday, President John Dramani Mahama said the move demonstrated Ghana’s commitment to health sovereignty.
He said core health sector allocations had risen to GHS23.3 billion and, with resources from the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) included, total health financing for 2026 stood at GHS34.7 billion.
President Mahama recalled that in January 2025, the health system faced severe strain due to ageing equipment and declining donor support.
“Last year, donor funding to the health sector fell from 19 per cent to just 2.2 per cent, creating an annual funding gap of more than GHS2.4 billion,” he said.
He said the withdrawal of partner-funded programmes, including those supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), exposed vulnerabilities in essential supplies and services, particularly in remote communities.
President Mahama said Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) accounted for over 40 per cent of all deaths and remained a major driver of household poverty.
To address the burden, he said Government had established the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, popularly known as Mahama Cares, as the first nationwide financing mechanism dedicated to chronic and non-communicable diseases.
The President said the National Health Insurance Levy had been uncapped to improve liquidity under broader health financing reforms.
“Claims payments to health facilities are now made in a timely manner, ending the long-standing delays of up to six months. Government is also finalising measures to increase provider tariffs by over 100 per cent to better reflect the true cost of healthcare delivery,” he said.
He said the reforms had increased active NHIS enrolment from 57 per cent at the start of 2025 to 66 per cent currently.
President Mahama said health workforce density had risen from 16.6 per 10,000 people in 2025 to nearly 42 per 10,000, while public sector health employment had doubled to about 200,000 workers.
He said the Government had absorbed 13,500 nurses and midwives, as well as hundreds of doctors and pharmacists, into the public payroll over the past year.
President Mahama said Government would expand recruitment this year and address maldistribution through targeted incentives, urging health professionals to accept postings to underserved areas as “a national call to duty.”
To align with the changing disease profile, he said new postgraduate programmes in cardiology, nephrology, endocrinology and oncology would be introduced, alongside existing emergency and critical care nursing programmes.
“New post-graduate programmes in cardiology, nephrology, endocrinology and oncology will be introduced, alongside existing programmes in emergency and critical care nursing,” he said.
The President said some 30 nursing training institutions would transition to competency-based degree curricula, supported by scholarships for PhD-level training for nurses and allied health professionals.
On infrastructure, he reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to completing ongoing projects and ensuring adequate staffing, equipment, and financing.
“As part of the reset agenda, Government is making strategic investments in local pharmaceutical and vaccine production, including GHS50 million in seed funding for the National Vaccine Institute,” he said.
President Mahama said a local manufacturer had received market authorisation in 2025 to produce snake venom antiserum, while tetanus and diphtheria vaccine production was expected to begin this year through a partnership with an Indonesian pharmaceutical firm.
He said the Government was also finalising an advanced market commitment to prioritise locally manufactured medical products and pharmaceuticals in public procurement.
President Mahama said the immunisation budget for children and pregnant women had increased by 46 per cent in 2025 to more than GHS171 million, enabling full financing of routine vaccines.
The Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine was also introduced in 2025 to protect girls and women against cervical cancer.
He tasked the Ghana AIDS Commission to expand access to testing, prevention and treatment, particularly in high-burden regions, noting that HIV prevalence stood at 1.6 per cent, with an estimated 350,000 people living with HIV.
President Mahama said Government would roll out a free primary healthcare programme this year to remove cost barriers and strengthen prevention, screening and health promotion, especially for NCDs.
He announced that the Ghana Medical Trust Fund would be scaled up to expand access to advanced cardiac care, including cardiac catheterisation services, at Korle Bu, Komfo Anokye and Tamale Teaching Hospitals.
This, he said, would reduce overseas referrals and position Ghana as a regional hub for specialised healthcare in line with its medical tourism agenda.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey
