Unpaid nurses and midwives thank Health Minister as salary arrears are resolved

The Coalition of Unpaid Nurses and Midwives of Ghana has commended the Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, for his intervention in resolving salary arrears owed to nurses and midwives recruited in 2024.

The President of the Coalition, Stephen Kwadwo Takyia, led a delegation to the Ministry of Health to express appreciation to the Minister and officials for their sustained engagement in addressing the group’s employment and salary concerns.

At the meeting, Mr Akandoh explained that the affected health professionals had been employed and commenced work without financial clearance, creating difficulties for the government.

“The affected health professionals had commenced work without financial clearance, creating a difficult situation for Government,” the Minister said.

He said the Ministry, instead of withdrawing their appointments, decided to retain the workers at post while engaging the Ministry of Finance to secure the required funding.

Mr Akandoh disclosed that financial clearance had now been secured for all 13,500 affected workers, with only a few isolated cases yet to be resolved.

He consequently directed the Human Resource Directorate to expedite action to address the remaining cases.

To prevent similar challenges in the future, the Minister also instructed health-sector agencies to speed up the issuance of appointment letters and the mechanisation of newly recruited health professionals to ensure that their salaries are processed promptly.

Government Targets 16,000 Health Workers

Looking ahead, Mr Akandoh announced that the government was targeting the recruitment of 16,000 health professionals in 2026, with financial clearance already secured for the first 8,000.

“Government is targeting the recruitment of 16,000 health professionals in 2026 with financial clearance already secured for the first 8,000,” he revealed.

The Minister also urged newly recruited health professionals to report to their assigned health facilities by August 20, 2026, warning that failure to meet the deadline could result in the loss of their appointments.

“Those who fail to report by the deadline risk losing their appointments,” he warned.

He further called on health workers to serve with dedication and treat patients with respect and dignity, emphasising that patients must remain at the centre of healthcare delivery.

The Coalition expressed gratitude to the Minister and the Ministry for their continued engagement and support in addressing the challenges.

Members expressed hope that with the salary and payment issues largely resolved, the group would soon shed the “Unpaid” tag from its name.