Unposted Health Officers Demand Urgent Posting Amid Typhoid Outbreak

The Unposted Environmental Health Officers and Assistants Association of Ghana has called for urgent government action to address the ongoing typhoid fever outbreak that has claimed several lives since January 2025. The epidemic, which has severely affected the Oti Region and resulted in the deaths of a chief and two former District Chief Executives, has been described by the Association as a “preventable tragedy” rooted in longstanding neglect of the environmental health sector.

In a statement issued on Monday, September 1, 2025, the Association expressed condolences to bereaved families and warned that the crisis reflects deeper systemic failures in public health management. The group pointed to government inaction on critical sanitation issues and highlighted the persistent unemployment of more than 3,600 graduates from the nation’s three Schools of Hygiene—Ho, Tamale, and Accra—since 2021.

According to the Association, the absence of these trained professionals in active service has worsened public health vulnerabilities at a time when effective environmental health interventions are urgently needed. The outbreak has reportedly affected over 10,233 individuals in the Oti Region alone, underscoring the devastating consequences of policy inaction.

The statement further held government accountable for what it termed a lack of political will to upgrade the Environmental Health Directorate into a fully resourced authority. Without such an upgrade, the country, it warned, would continue to face recurring outbreaks of typhoid, cholera, and malaria. The Association also identified weak waste management systems, inadequate medical screening for food vendors, and insufficient field officers as compounding factors that have contributed to the current emergency.

While welcoming comments by the Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Water and Sanitation, Hon. Kwabena Oti Bless, who recently suggested raising the sanitation levy and upgrading the Directorate, the Association cautioned that such proposals must be followed by decisive action rather than remaining “political talk.”

The group urged the Ministries of Local Government, Health, and Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, together with regional and district authorities, to expedite financial clearance for the immediate posting of unemployed officers. “As professionals, we are ready and willing to supplement the efforts of the overburdened officers currently on the field,” the statement affirmed.

The Association reiterated its commitment to improving sanitation and protecting public health across Ghana. It pledged to continue advocating for the rights of environmental health professionals, while pressing for urgent government action to strengthen preventive health systems.

The call for immediate posting highlights the indispensable role of environmental health officers in safeguarding communities from preventable diseases. As Ghana strives toward universal health coverage, sustained investment in environmental health and stronger collaboration between policymakers and frontline professionals remain critical to protecting lives and ensuring a resilient health system.