The Minister for Health, Hon. Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, has assured the remaining batch of unpaid nurses across the country that their outstanding salaries will soon be settled.
In a statement issued by the Ministry of Health, the Minister reaffirmed his commitment to resolving all salary-related challenges affecting health workers, noting that his outfit is working closely with the Ministry of Finance to clear the arrears.
Hon. Akandoh expressed sympathy for the affected nurses, emphasizing that no health worker should be engaged without valid financial clearance, and explained that the current situation largely arose due to expired clearances from 2024.
According to the Ministry:
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In August 2024, financial clearance was granted for the recruitment of about 13,500 nurses, but the clearance expired in December 2024.
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As a result, some newly posted nurses continued working without pay.
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So far, over 7,000 nurses have been paid, while about 6,500 are awaiting payment, with provisions already being made to settle their salaries.
The Ministry added that similar payment delays experienced by pharmacists and medical house officers who completed their housemanship in 2023 and 2024 have been resolved. It also assured rotation nurses and allied health interns who began their rotations in 2024 that their allowances will soon be processed and paid.
The statement stressed that government is adopting pragmatic measures to address systemic challenges in the health payroll process and prevent future occurrences.
“The welfare of health workers remains a top priority,” the Minister emphasized, adding that government is determined to deal decisively with all such challenges as part of efforts to strengthen Ghana’s health sector.
The press release, signed by Tony Goodman, Head of Health Training Institutions and Spokesperson for the Ministry, reaffirmed that the Ministry remains committed to ensuring fairness and stability for all categories of health professionals across the country.
