Government Launches Bold Digital Overhaul to Rescue Ghana’s Troubled Health System
Ghana’s Ministry of Health has announced an ambitious plan to restore the country’s electronic healthcare management system, which has suffered major disruptions in recent months. The initiative, unveiled by Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh on Wednesday, October 29, involves the deployment of a new national digital platform — the Ghana Healthcare Information Management System (GHIMS) — over a four-week period.
The move comes after weeks of challenges that left hospitals struggling with record-keeping, delayed patient care, and manual data processing. Mr. Akandoh described the rollout as a decisive step toward rebuilding confidence in Ghana’s digital health infrastructure.
“We have a four-week plan that will get us out of this mess,” he stated. “The medical records of Ghanaians will never return to the manual system. We are moving forward — responsibly, confidently, and decisively.”
According to the minister, the transition to the new GHIMS platform will take place in three main phases to ensure minimal disruption to service delivery.
In the first week, teaching hospitals, regional hospitals, and large district hospitals will be migrated onto the system. The second phase will cover remaining district hospitals, while clinics, health centres, and CHPS compounds will follow in the third week.
By the fourth week, all targeted health facilities are expected to be integrated, restoring real-time access to patient records and data sharing across the national health network.
The new digital platform will serve as the backbone for Ghana’s public health data management — a critical element in improving service coordination, efficiency, and transparency in the healthcare system.
The crisis traces back to a $100 million contract signed in 2019 between the Government of Ghana and Lightwave Health Information Management System Limited, a private firm tasked with connecting 950 health facilities to a unified digital platform.
Under the agreement, the project was expected to be completed by 2022 but suffered multiple delays and performance setbacks. Despite extensions granted until December 2024, only 450 out of 950 facilities were connected, according to the minister.
“Clearly, nobody needs to tell you that the company underperformed,” Mr. Akandoh said, adding that poor execution and infrastructure lapses severely undermined the system’s reliability.
The system failure triggered widespread operational breakdowns, especially in regions such as Ashanti, where hospitals reverted to paper-based documentation. The delays left patients facing long queues and disrupted data flow between facilities.
Following the collapse of the system, the Health Ministry initiated a forensic audit of Lightwave’s performance and infrastructure. The audit uncovered major deficiencies in both the software functionality and hardware components supplied under the contract.
Further complications arose when it was discovered that the data servers were hosted on a cloud system in India, making it difficult for Ghanaian authorities to gain direct control of citizens’ medical records.
“To have access to the medical records of Ghanaians without state control — without even access to the service — was unacceptable,” Mr. Akandoh noted.
As a result, the government requested a full handover of the system and infrastructure, citing the company’s failure to meet contractual obligations.
Safeguarding Ghana’s Digital Health Future
The introduction of the GHIMS platform represents a critical reset for Ghana’s digital health ambitions. Over the past decade, several African countries — including Kenya, Rwanda, and South Africa — have invested in electronic medical record (EMR) systems to improve healthcare delivery and track public health outcomes.
Ghana’s attempt to digitize its healthcare operations is therefore part of a broader regional effort to modernize health governance and reduce inefficiencies caused by paper-based systems.
According to World Health Organization (WHO) data, countries that successfully integrate electronic health systems often see up to 25% improvements in patient data accuracy and faster response times in emergency care. Ghana’s revamped approach could place it on a similar trajectory, provided oversight mechanisms are enforced.
Mr. Akandoh emphasized that the new system will be managed directly under the Ministry of Health and National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), ensuring transparency and public accountability.
“Future digital health projects will be executed with greater transparency, oversight, and accountability,” he assured.
The failure of the previous system has sparked renewed debate over procurement oversight and the capacity of private contractors in executing national digital projects. Experts have called for stronger project monitoring and clearer ownership structures to prevent data control issues from recurring.
In a recent report by the Centre for Digital Governance (CDG), over 60% of government ICT projects in sub-Saharan Africa fail to meet timelines or deliverables, mainly due to weak supervision, vendor disputes, and underfunding.
Ghana’s health data crisis, while disruptive, offers a learning opportunity to build a more resilient and sovereign digital ecosystem that protects both citizen data and national interests.
With the rollout of GHIMS underway, many stakeholders remain cautiously optimistic. Health workers and patients alike are hopeful that the new platform will streamline operations, reduce administrative delays, and strengthen coordination between facilities.
While challenges such as training, connectivity, and data migration remain, experts believe that Ghana’s commitment to digital transformation is a vital investment in long-term healthcare reform.
If successfully implemented, the system could become a model for public digital health innovation in West Africa, helping the country build a more responsive and technology-driven health sector.
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