Minority demands probe into shutdown of health information systems over $64,511 debt

The Minority in Parliament has called for an investigation into the nationwide shutdown of critical electronic health information systems over a US$64,511 debt.

In a statement issued on November 6, 2026, the Ranking Member of Parliament’s Health Committee, Dr Nana Ayew Afriye, described the disruption as unacceptable and called for those responsible for it to be held accountable.

Unpaid US$64,510 bill forces shutdown of GHS health information systems

“It is unacceptable for critical national health information systems to remain vulnerable to disruption over unresolved administrative and financial obligations,” the statement said.

The Minority also called for an independent audit of the country’s digital health infrastructure, a clear timeline for restoring the affected systems and details of government spending on the Ghana Health Information Management System (GHIMS).

The demand follows a Ghana Health Service (GHS) communication dated November 2, 2026, which indicated that critical electronic health information systems, including the District Health Information Management System 2 (DHIMS2), had been inaccessible since October 29, 2026.

The disruption reportedly occurred after technology company Akamai suspended ten servers over an outstanding bill of US$64,510.95.

The Minority questioned how the unpaid amount was allowed to disrupt critical national health services.

“How could institutions entrusted with managing Ghana's health information infrastructure allow ten servers to be suspended over an outstanding obligation of approximately US$64,511?” the statement asked.

The Minority also raised concerns about government spending on digital health systems, noting that the Ministry of Health’s budget increased from about GH¢17.8 billion in 2025 to GH¢22.8 billion in 2026.

It is therefore requesting the government to provide details of the amount allocated to GHIMS, how much has been spent and the progress made in implementing the system.

The government introduced GHIMS in October 2025 to replace the Lightwave Health Information Management System (LHIMS), with the aim of strengthening state control over health data and reducing reliance on private providers.

However, the Minority stressed that GHIMS and DHIMS2 serve different functions, although both form part of Ghana’s wider digital health system.

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It also called for an investigation into Akamai’s decision to suspend the servers and a review of the agreement with the company, including whether it should be terminated.

“Digital health transformation must be measured not by the introduction of new platforms, but by the reliability, accessibility and sustainability of the systems serving Ghanaians,” the statement said.

Read the full statement below:





MAG/BAI

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