Ministry of Health commemorates 2025 world TB Day

The Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the Ghana Health Service, has commemorated the 2025 World TB Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness and accelerating efforts to eliminate tuberculosis (TB).
This year’s theme, “Yes, We Can End TB! Commit, Invest, Deliver,” emphasizes the urgent need for decisive action. Stakeholders at the event identified major barriers to TB control in Ghana, including stigma, limited access to diagnostic tools, and insufficient funding.
The Minister of Health, Hon. Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, highlighted the progress Ghana has made in detecting TB cases while acknowledging the gaps that still need to be addressed. He stated that in 2024, the country recorded over 20,000 TB cases, a significant improvement in detection. However, this number still falls short of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) target of 44,000 cases annually.
He emphasized the government’s commitment to ending TB by increasing funding for TB control activities, including essential logistics and medical supplies, improving access to diagnostic tools like GeneXpert machines and digital X-rays, and strengthening healthcare systems to ensure no TB patient goes undiagnosed or untreated.
As part of efforts to engage the public in the fight against TB, the minister urged all Ghanaians to support the campaign by raising awareness in their communities, supporting TB patients, and encouraging early testing. He challenged every Ghanaian to reflect on their role in ending TB, asking whether they could raise awareness, support someone affected by the disease, or encourage others to get tested.
The Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Prof. Samuel Kaba Akoriyea, reiterated that this year’s theme serves as a reminder that eliminating TB in Ghana requires a strong commitment from leadership at all levels, sustained investment in TB prevention, diagnostics, and treatment, and effective delivery of interventions by strengthening Ghana’s healthcare system and fostering partnerships.
He mentioned that, as part of efforts to align with global health practices, the National TB Control Program has revised its guidelines to conform with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) latest standards.
Prof. Dorothy Yeboah-Manu, the chairperson of the Advisory Board of the National TB Control Program, stated that Ghana has intensified research to identify patients living with TB. She urged stakeholders to continue collaborating and investing “our time, our resources, and our men” into TB control efforts.
Source: PR Unit