SEND Ghana has renewed its call on government to establish a dedicated public health emergency fund, warning that the absence of such a fund forces health authorities to navigate bureaucratic processes to access resources whenever an outbreak occurs, delaying critical interventions.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Top Story, SEND Ghana Country Director Harriet Nuamah Agyemang said the fund would allow government to quickly mobilise resources and respond appropriately to outbreaks without being slowed down by normal financial procedures.
“For me, this is on government. We have been calling; SEND Ghana has been calling on government to get its emergency preparedness and response fund, or a public health emergency fund that reduces those bureaucracies, so that when we have an outbreak, we just tap into that fund,” she said.
According to her, SEND Ghana has advocated the establishment of the fund for years, but government is yet to put it in place. “It has been years, and we still do not have that fund established,” she stressed.
Years of Advocacy Without Result
SEND Ghana’s push for a Public Health Emergency Fund is not new. The organisation has been campaigning for a statutory fund since at least 2022, when Ms Nuamah Agyemang, then Senior Programmes Officer, proposed the establishment of a Public Health Emergency or Epidemic Preparedness Fund to boost the country’s preparedness and ability to contain future epidemics. Since 2021, she has led the Epidemic Preparedness Financing Campaign, collaborating with health professionals, academia, traditional leaders, and civil society organisations to advocate for a statutory fund to support health emergencies.
In February 2025, at a National Dialogue on Public Health Emergency Financing in Ghana, Ms Nuamah Agyemang urged government to make national budgetary allocations to Epidemic Preparedness and Response, citing the lack of a dedicated fund and specific budget line for epidemic preparedness as issues requiring urgent attention. “Epidemic preparedness is important, and we need funding to do that. We must not depend on global funding anymore, we need to look inward, mobilise funds from our domestic resources and set it aside for epidemics,” she said at the time.
The advocacy has yielded some progress at the local level. The Adaklu and Aligye Kwabre districts included Epidemic Preparedness Response in their 2023 to 2024 budgets for the first time, while assemblies including the Tema Metropolitan Assembly, Keta North, and Birim South have consistently increased funding for emergency preparedness and response. Four districts — Lower Manya Krobo, Birim South, Lambussie and Gushegu — were at various stages of setting up district public health emergency funds. However, a national fund remains elusive.
A Nationwide Yellow Fever Outbreak
Ms Nuamah Agyemang’s comments come as health authorities manage suspected yellow fever cases across the country. Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh has disclosed that approximately 450 suspected cases were recorded between June and September 2026, including 74 in the Upper West Region. Three of the 74 cases have so far been confirmed as yellow fever.
The Ministry of Health declared a yellow fever outbreak in affected districts of the Upper West Region following laboratory confirmation of three cases, all of which resulted in death. The declaration was made in line with the International Health Regulations (2005) and the National Public Health Act, 2012 (Act 851). Suspected cases presenting with fever, jaundice and bleeding were first reported from 9 September 2026 in Sissala West and Wa West districts. Samples were initially tested in-country before further confirmation at the WHO-accredited Institute Pasteur laboratory in Dakar, Senegal. The three confirmed cases proved fatal despite aggressive clinical management.
In response, the Ministry and Ghana Health Service have activated the National and Regional Public Health Emergency Operations Centres and deployed Rapid Response Teams to affected communities for active case finding, enhanced surveillance and risk communication. Authorities are preparing a targeted emergency vaccination campaign this October covering Wa West, Sissala West and Sissala East districts. Additional measures include promoting the use of insecticide repellents and insecticide-treated bed nets, strengthening case management at designated health facilities, and intensifying community engagement.
Pandemic Fund Is Not Enough
While Ghana has received external support through the Pandemic Fund, a $16.3 million grant implemented over three years to strengthen disease surveillance, laboratory capacity, and the health workforce, SEND Ghana argues that this does not substitute for a dedicated domestic fund that can be accessed immediately during an emergency.
The Pandemic Fund Project, launched with the inauguration of a National Steering Committee co-chaired by the Minister of Health and WHO, is a strategic investment in early warning systems and health infrastructure. However, SEND Ghana’s advocacy has consistently emphasised that Ghana must mobilise domestic resources rather than rely on global funding.
“The fund would allow government to quickly mobilise resources and respond appropriately to outbreaks without being slowed down by normal financial procedures,” Ms Nuamah Agyemang reiterated.
Call for Local Vaccine Manufacturing
Ms Nuamah Agyemang also urged government to consider strengthening local vaccine manufacturing, particularly amid reported efforts to procure additional vaccine doses and secure isolation spaces. She said the government should assess the progress of Ghana’s vaccine manufacturing initiative and explore partnerships with private manufacturers to improve the country’s capacity to produce vaccines when needed.
Ghana has taken deliberate steps toward vaccine self-reliance in recent years. The establishment of the National Vaccine Institute and the government’s 10-year vaccine manufacturing roadmap have been bolstered by international partnerships. In December 2025, the World Health Organization and the European Union launched the EUR 1.1 million Vax & Pharm Ghana Project to advance local pharmaceutical and vaccine manufacturing capacities. Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh underscored the urgency of the initiative at its launch, stating, “Health security cannot be outsourced. Access to life-saving medicines cannot be left to chance or charity. We must build our own capacity”.
Ghana is also set to roll out locally produced tetanus-diphtheria vaccines, with technology transfer programmes underway in partnership with international manufacturers.
About SEND Ghana
SEND Ghana is a non-governmental organisation focused on advocacy for pro-poor policies. Ms Nuamah Agyemang became its first female Country Director in August 2024, marking a groundbreaking step for the organisation as it celebrated 26 years of impactful research and policy advocacy. She holds a Master’s in Development Studies from the University of Ghana and has 21 years of experience in civil society advocacy.
Under her leadership, SEND Ghana has intensified its Epidemic Preparedness Financing Campaign, working with government institutions, civil society organisations, the media, and community leaders to strengthen Ghana’s ability to prepare for and respond to public health emergencies. The campaign has helped build a broad network of organisations and advocates committed to securing reliable financing for public health emergency preparedness, even as the fund itself remains unestablished.
