President John Dramani Mahama has reiterated his commitment to transfer the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC) from the Ministry of Health to the University of Ghana.

He said the transfer was part of a broader vision to establish a world-class centre of research, teaching, and clinical excellence.

The President said this in Accra yesterday when a transition committee, set up after the 2024 elections, presented its final report on the reintegration of the UGMC into the university’s academic framework.

“We want to find the best path to maintain the national healthcare standard.

The intention of building the hospital was to create it as a world-class centre of research and learning for the University of Ghana,” he added.

President Mahama said that the government would study the committee’s findings and present them to Cabinet for discussion, after which “we will itemise what the steps are towards an eventual full transition.”

The ceremony was attended by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Prof. Nana Aba Appiah Amfo, senior government officials, members of the transition team, and representatives from the Ministries of Health and Education.

End strike

The Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, who also spoke at the event, hailed President Mahama as a “steward of honour” for walking the talk on his promises.

He said that following the committee’s recommendations, an interim management committee of nine would likely be constituted to oversee the UGMC under the absolute control and supervision of the University of Ghana.

Mr Iddrisu also used the occasion to appeal to striking university staff to call off their industrial action, saying that the government had made part-payment of outstanding tier two pension arrears and was committed to resolving the remaining issues, including retirement age concerns.

Roadmap

The Co-Chair of the Transition Committee, Prof. Aaron Lawson, explained that the committee was guided by an eight-point mandate, focusing on operational review, integration mechanisms, and sustainable solutions for funding, staffing, and resources.

He outlined a three-phase, 10-year implementation plan.

The first phase — within one year — would involve the legal transfer of shares, governance agreements, and initial integration of the University of Ghana Medical School faculty into UGMC operations.

Phase two (years 1–4) would advance functional integration through specialist expansion and infrastructure upgrades, while phase three (years 5–10), aims at full maturation, with UGMC becoming Ghana’s premier quaternary care centre within a consolidated academic health system.

The report draws lessons from leading global academic health systems such as Johns Hopkins in the US and University College London Hospital in the UK.

When completed, the transition would make UGMC the only major teaching hospital in the country directly under the control of a university, rather than the Ministry of Health, a move described as pivotal to enhance academic freedom, medical training and specialised research.