Accra, March 25, – More than 50 per cent of Tuberculosis (TB) cases in Ghana continue to go undiagnosed, posing a major challenge to public health, the National TB Control Programme of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) revealed on Tuesday.
Dr Bernard Ziem, Acting Programme Manager, stated that the country detected only about 49.1 per cent of the estimated 44,000 annual TB cases. This leaves thousands of infected individuals untreated, perpetuating the spread of the disease in communities.
“More than half of TB cases remain undiagnosed and untreated, which undermines the progress we have made in treatment and control,” Dr Ziem said at the official launch of the 2026 World TB Day in Accra.
The 2026 commemoration carries the theme: “Yes! We Can End TB! Led by Countries. Powered by People.”
Dr Ziem acknowledged that Ghana performs well in treating identified TB patients, maintaining high treatment success rates. However, the country has been classified in the Global Tuberculosis Report 2024 as having low case detection but high treatment success, a combination experts warn is unsustainable in the long term.
He noted that while other countries have improved both detection and treatment outcomes, Ghana’s progress in identifying new TB cases remains slow. Key challenges include limited diagnostic tools and uneven distribution of resources. Currently, the country is operating below optimal capacity, with a shortfall of 32 GeneXpert machines.
Recent investments, including an additional 15 GeneXpert machines, are expected to improve testing coverage from 87 to 92 per cent—still short of the target. Mobile digital X-ray units, crucial for community screening, are in short supply, with only 31 units serving 261 districts, covering just eight per cent of national needs.
Dr Ziem emphasized the importance of expanding community-based screening, noting that outreach in high-risk areas identifies more cases than relying solely on facility-based detection. He also called for stronger partnerships with the private sector and community networks, including the Stop TB Partnership and TB Voice Network, whose volunteers contribute nearly 10 per cent of detected cases.
The private health sector, which manages about 40 per cent of outpatient care nationwide, remains underutilized for TB detection. Dr Ziem urged greater government investment, expanded screening initiatives, and collaborative efforts across public and private sectors to close the detection gap.
“With the right resources and collective action, Ghana can move to a high detection, high treatment success category and ultimately end TB,” he stressed.
Ghana aims to meet global TB elimination targets by 2030, but identifying the “missing cases” will be critical to success.
Dr Fiona Braka, WHO Country Representative, pledged continued support and urged the Government to increase domestic funding and accelerate the implementation of the joint TB/HIV National Strategic Plan (2026–2030), in line with commitments made at the UN High-Level Meeting. She also encouraged partners, donors, communities, and civil society to sustain efforts in reaching vulnerable populations and ensuring accountability.
At the event, Deputy Minister of Health, Professor Grace Ayensu-Danquah, formally handed over 10 digital X-ray machines and 15 GeneXpert units to the Ghana Health Service to enhance nationwide TB testing and early detection.
World Tuberculosis Day, observed annually on March 24, aims to raise public awareness of the global TB epidemic and efforts to eliminate the disease.
GHBUSS
25 March 2026
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