Ghana has rejected a proposed health compact with the United States, with President John Dramani Mahama saying the agreement raised concerns over national sovereignty and access to sensitive health data.
Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, Mahama said the proposed deal was rejected by Ghana’s Cabinet almost immediately after it was presented.
“It was the compact that was thrown out in record time in our Cabinet. I’ve never seen anything thrown out as fast as that. And so, of course, we rejected it,” Mahama said.
According to the President, the proposed agreement would have given the United States access to Ghana’s pathogen profiles and medical records.
Mahama said Ghana instead decided to pursue a new approach aimed at reducing dependence on foreign assistance and strengthening domestic capacity to produce medicines and vaccines.
The initiative, dubbed the Accra Reset, was launched following the withdrawal of US aid support, with Ghana seeking to expand local pharmaceutical and vaccine production.
Ghana’s position comes amid similar concerns raised by other African countries over proposed US health agreements, including Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The issue has increasingly placed questions of health sovereignty, data governance and domestic pharmaceutical capacity at the centre of debates over Africa’s relationship with foreign health partners.