The country has recorded 129 cases of cerebrospinal meningitis (CSM) and 719 confirmed cases of cholera, the Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, has told Parliament.
He said while 16 deaths from CSM had occurred, all in the Upper West Region as of February 16 this year, 49 cholera-related deaths had been recorded in five regions as of February 13.
For the CSM, the Minister of Health said 20 persons were currently on admission at health facilities in the Wa Municipality, Nadowli, Wa West, Jirapa and Nandom districts.
“Mr Speaker, despite the substantial number of cases and unfortunate deaths, I wish to assure the House and the good people of Ghana that we have made considerable efforts to keep the outbreak under control,” the Health Minister said.
Briefing Members of Parliament (MPs) yesterday on the outbreak of cerebrospinal meningitis (CSM) and cholera in the country, Mr Akandoh said: “Our efforts are paying off”.
“Mr Speaker, already a wave of improvement is evident in the Upper West Region, where new meningitis cases are decreasing,” he said.
The briefing followed a prayer the Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, made to the Speaker to invite the minister to brief the House on the cholera outbreak in Winneba and other parts of the country as well as the measures taken to contain its spread.
The Health Minister said the positive decline in cases of meningitis followed the ministry's swift and decisive actions.
They included deploying experts to support local health teams, conducting a high-level visit to assess the situation, providing support and ensuring free treatment for all affected individuals.
“We also activated the Emergency Operations Centre for coordinated response efforts and engaged in consultations with international experts.
“The mobilisation of essential antibiotics and targeted public awareness campaigns have further bolstered our efforts in controlling the outbreak,” he said.
Mr Akandoh said the ministry had dispatched a team of local and international experts from the national level to support the regional and district health teams in managing the outbreak.
We have exempted all individuals affected by meningitis from paying for treatment, ensuring that everyone has access to the care they need.
“We have activated the Emergency Operations Centre at the national and regional levels to coordinate the response efforts,” he said.
The minister added that the ministry had mobilised additional antibiotics to support the Regional Medical Stores while 10,000 vials of ceftriaxone, the antibiotic used in treating meningitis, had been approved to ensure that there was no shortage of essential medicines.
Cholera outbreak
On the cholera outbreak, Mr Akandoh said the current outbreak began in October 2024 in Ada West in the Greater Accra Region.
He said from the onset in October 2024, the disease had spread to other districts in Greater Accra and four other regions, namely Central, Western, Ashanti and Eastern.
Mr Akandoh said the situation was improving, with active cases now concentrated in the Central Region only.
“The districts of Agona West and Effutu have been particularly hard-hit, and in the past week alone, these two districts reported 133 cases, 23 admissions, and unfortunately, two deaths.”
“Despite the worrying situation in the Central Region, new cholera cases are decreasing, and the districts of Agona West and Effutu, which were initially hard hit, are now showing a decline in new cases,” he said.
The minister stated that the positive shift was a testament to the relentless efforts of healthcare workers and partners, who had been diligently implementing a robust response plan.
He added that cholera treatment centres had been established, and health workers were conducting public awareness campaigns to educate communities.
Briefing members on the measures taken so far to bring it under control, he said the Ministry of Health, in collaboration with various partners, had activated regional and district public health emergency committees in all affected regions to ensure a coordinated response.
“We have heightened surveillance in all districts, with active community case search and contact tracing to identify and manage cases promptly.
“We have strengthened laboratory capacity to test and confirm suspected cases, ensuring accurate diagnosis and timely treatment,” he said.
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