Gov’t targets health data restoration in 4 weeks under new GHIMS

The government has announced a four-week plan to restore the country’s electronic medical records system following months of disruptions caused by a failed $100 million contract with technology firm Lightwaves.

Speaking at the Government Accountability Series in Accra on Wednesday, Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh said his ministry had developed a new locally controlled platform—the Ghana Health Information Management System (GHIMS)—to replace the suspended Lightwaves system.

“The medical records of Ghanaians will never go back to our old ways,” the minister said. “We are moving forward responsibly, confidently and decisively.”

According to Mr Akandoh, Lightwaves was contracted in 2019 to connect 950 health facilities to a digital health records platform, but by the time the five-year contract expired in December 2024, only 450 facilities had been connected, despite the company receiving about $77 million—more than 70% of the total amount.

“It’s unconscionable for any company to have access to the medical records of Ghanaians without the state having control,” he said, adding that parts of the system’s cloud infrastructure were hosted outside Ghana.

An audit conducted by the ministry revealed major shortfalls, including missing or substandard equipment worth an estimated $18 million, according to Minister Akandoh.

The minister said the findings had been referred to the attorney-general and security agencies for advice and further action.

In the meantime, the ministry has rolled out the GIMS platform to restore health information services and protect data sovereignty. The new system will be owned and managed entirely by the state and integrated with the National Health Insurance Authority’s database.

Under the restoration plan, teaching and regional hospitals will migrate to the new system within the first week, followed by district hospitals in week two, health centres and polyclinics in week three, and a national mop-up in week four.

Mr Akandoh said future contracts will be opened to multiple local vendors under a new National Health Information Exchange, ensuring that “no single company will ever again monopolise Ghana’s health data.”

“This is our roadmap to full restoration. By the end of four weeks, the system will be fully back—Ghana-owned and Ghana-controlled,” he pledged.