6,245 nurses and midwives have been successfully recruited out of a total of 6,500 available slots in the recent nationwide recruitment exercise, according to the Ministry of Health.

At a press conference in Accra, the Director of Human Resources at the Ministry of Health, Frederick Mensah-Acheampong, disclosed that the exercise comes after the Ministry received financial clearance from the Ministry of Finance to recruit about 8,000 health professionals.

According to him, about 105,000 unemployed health professionals remain on the government’s database, with some having been awaiting recruitment since 2018 and 2019.He added that, as of now, 771 out of 900 allied health professionals, 235 out of 250 pharmacy professionals, and 300 physician assistants have been recruited.

“We have received financial clearance to recruit about 8,000 health professionals from the Ministry of Finance. The Ministry acknowledges the anxiety and interest these recruitment exercises have generated, particularly given the backlog of about 105,000 unemployed health professionals, some of whom have been awaiting recruitment since 2018 and 2019,” he said.

In April, the Health Ministry announced that thousands of health professionals who have been unemployed for years after graduation would be employed by the government. The Ministry announced this in a formal statement signed by the spokesperson for the Ministry of Health, Tony Goodman, shared on its official Twitter handle on Thursday, April 3.

“The Ministry of Health announces the commencement of a nationwide recruitment of health professionals effective 16th April 2026, following the granting of financial clearance”, the statement said.

The Ministry noted that, “Recruitment will be decentralised and conducted at the district level based on verified vacancies” adding that the exercise will be decentralised and conducted at the district level based on verified vacancies.

Meanwhile, in early November, the Health Ministry announced the allocation of doctors nationwide, with about 80% of the earmarked for district health facilities.

Fast forward to November 5, Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh revealed that his outfit was processing about 700 junior medical doctors for posting.

According to the statutes of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), newly posted medical officers are generally expected to report to their assigned health facility within two weeks of receiving their posting letter.

However, a recent report dated November 28 released by the health authority shows that about 70% of the newly posted doctors have yet to report to their new posts.

An overwhelming 305 doctors, or 66%, have still not shown up. This means that 7 out of 10 doctors failed to report to their assigned regions.

According to the data, urban facilities in Greater Accra and Kumasi, as well as the Eastern region, are recording the highest turnout, with many doctors reporting to their posts, representing over 60% of the total turnout, to the neglect of rural centres. Several health centres in rural areas still wait in hopes of the appearance of medical officers deployed to their districts.

Out of the 20 medical officers allocated to Greater Accra, 16 have reported, with only 4 left to show up. representing an 80 percent turnout. In the Ashanti Region, there were 33 allocations, and so far, 25 have reported, representing a 76 percent turnout. Also, the 36 allocations to the Eastern Region had 23, representing a 64 percent turnout.

On the other hand, regions in the North have recorded an abysmal turnout. North East so far has recorded a zero turnout after a 19 medical officers' allocation.

The Upper West Region also had no reporting despite an allocation of 32. Oti, with 21 allocations, saw only one officer reporting (4.8%), Western North recorded two out of 31, representing a 6.5% turnout, and Savannah had seven officers reporting out of 19 allocated, representing a 36.8%. In the other low-performing regions, Upper East recorded seven reports out of 35 allocations, representing a 20% turnout, while the Northern Region saw seven out of 32 officers reporting, representing 21.9% percent.

Following this, GHS have encouraged Regions to intensify engagements with the medical officers to improve the current numbers.

The low turnout recorded in Ghana’s rural centres, particularly in the |Northern sectors, is nothing new as it is a long-standing challenge in Ghana’s health sector. Over the years, doctors have refused or delayed postings to rural and deprived areas, mainly due to poor infrastructure, lack of accommodation, and limited career opportunities.

Consequently, President John Dramani Mahama announced in his healthcare manifesto and policy statements, some reforms his government intends to make in the health sector to make postings to these rural areas attractive. Part of these include providing affordable accommodation at health facilities, offering home ownership schemes, and introducing risk exposure insurance for health workers.

The doctor–patient ratio in Ghana is about 1:10,450, with most doctors concentrated in Accra, Kumasi, and other urban centres, while areas like the Upper West and Northern regions have historically faced severe shortages, leaving rural populations underserved.

The posting of these doctors came about a month after the President of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA), Dr Frank Serebour, disclosed that approximately 800 doctors are jobless because they are waiting to be posted to various institutions to commence work.