By Team, GNA
Ho (V/R), Aug. 6, GNA – The Ministry of Health (MoH) is developing a comprehensive National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Health Policy and Guidelines, to provide a legal, ethical and operational framework for the safe, equitable and effective adoption of AI across Ghana’s healthcare system.
Dr Belinda Afriyie Nimako, the Director, Policy Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, MoH, in a presentation delivered by Mr Benjamin Nyakutsey, the Head of Policy Coordination at the Ministry, said the policy would strengthen governance, data protection, digital infrastructure, workforce readiness and regulatory oversight, to ensure AI supports improved healthcare delivery while safeguarding patient rights.
The presentation was made on the “State of Ghana’s AI in Health Policy and Guidelines Development, Data and Infrastructure, Workforce Readiness, and Alignment with WHO, OECD and EU Standards” at the International Conference on AI in Healthcare and Pharma (ICAIH 2026) on Wednesday, held in Ho.
The three-day conference is on the theme: “Accelerating Adoption of Healthcare AI in Ghana: From Vision and Policy to Practice and Impact.”
Dr Nimako explained that the proposed policy was anchored on Article 34(2) of the 1992 Constitution, which obliged the State to ensure the realisation of the right to good healthcare for all persons living in Ghana.
She said AI should not be viewed as a mere technology project but as a health systems strengthening agenda, aimed at improving service delivery, quality of care, patient safety, health equity and the attainment of Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
“The fundamental question is whether AI will help Ghana deliver better healthcare to its citizens. AI adoption must therefore be judged by the public value it creates rather than the technology itself,” she stated.
Dr Nimako observed that Ghana’s disease burden had become increasingly complex, with persistent infectious diseases, rising non-communicable diseases, mental health conditions, injuries and other co-morbidities, placing enormous pressure on an already stretched health workforce.
She said AI offered significant opportunities to improve disease screening, clinical decision support, disease surveillance, referrals, planning, and integrated healthcare delivery.
Presenting findings from stakeholder engagements, Dr Nimako disclosed that 44 per cent of respondents were already using or piloting AI technologies, while 76 per cent were actively exploring AI applications in healthcare.
However, she noted that 88 per cent expressed concerns about patient data privacy, while 76 per cent identified monitoring and evaluation as a top policy priority.
“The evidence shows that AI readiness is growing faster than governance arrangements. What Ghana needs is not simply a list of AI technologies but a comprehensive lifecycle policy that covers approval, procurement, validation, human oversight, monitoring, evaluation and accountability,” she said.
She identified several priority areas where stakeholders believed AI could significantly improve healthcare, including clinical diagnosis, non-communicable disease management, remote consultations, disease surveillance, public health intelligence, hospital operations, medical records management, workforce planning and staff wellbeing.
The policy would build on existing national legal and policy frameworks, including the Data Protection Act, the National AI Strategy, the Cybersecurity Act, the Electronic Transactions Act, the National Health Policy, the Universal Health Coverage Roadmap and the National E-Health Strategy.
Dr Nimako identified four major risks that required urgent policy attention before AI could be deployed at scale as: patient data privacy, cybersecurity, unreliable electricity and internet connectivity, and algorithmic bias arising from inadequate local data.
She stressed that patient data should remain protected under Ghana’s data governance framework and should not be stored outside the country without appropriate safeguards.
“AI is a decision-support tool and not a replacement for clinicians. Human judgement must always remain central to healthcare delivery,” she emphasised.
She also explained that the proposed policy would apply to public and private health institutions, health professionals, regulators, development partners, researchers, innovators and private sector actors involved in AI-enabled healthcare services.
The policy would also establish guiding principles, institutional arrangements, implementation standards, and accountability mechanisms to ensure responsible AI deployment.
Dr Nimako said the policy was being aligned with international frameworks, including the World Health Organization (WHO) guidance on AI in health, the OECD AI Principles, the European Union AI Act, UNESCO’s Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence, the African Union Continental AI Strategy and Africa’s Health Strategy.
She outlined seven strategic objectives of the policy involving; strengthening the legal and regulatory framework, improving governance and coordination, expanding digital infrastructure, building human resource capacity, enhancing health data governance, ensuring sustainable financing and promoting partnerships and innovation.
She noted that successful implementation would require strong institutional leadership involving the Ministry of Health, regulatory agencies, healthcare facilities, training institutions, and professional bodies.
Dr Nimako further stressed the need to strengthen internet connectivity, interoperability of electronic health systems, secure cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity systems and robust data governance mechanisms covering consent, access, data sharing and national data sovereignty.
“Our design principle is simple: Ghana must not scale high-impact AI faster than the systems that can safely govern it. Strong governance must always precede widespread deployment,” she said.
She expressed confidence that with the right legal framework, infrastructure, skilled workforce and partnerships, AI would significantly improve healthcare delivery, strengthen health system resilience and contribute towards achieving Universal Health Coverage in Ghana.
Key partners include WHO, UNESCO, UNICEF, Health Facilities Regulator Agency (HEFRA), FDA, UGBS, UG, KATH, MOH, adb, Microsoft, Melcom, AU, EBID, and Africa CDC.
GNA
Edited by Maxwell Awumah/ Christabel Addo