The World Health Organization has commended Ghana's one-year-old Medical Trust Fund, known as Mahama Cares, for its progress in attracting corporate donations to support patients battling cancer, kidney disease, and other costly illnesses. The fund has received over GH₵7 million in donations from banks and an energy firm. This significant milestone has been hailed as a step toward reducing the financial hardship faced by Ghanaians living with chronic and high-cost diseases.
Corporate Ghana has responded quickly to the fund's appeal, with several organizations making significant donations. National Investment Bank PLC donated GH₵6,102,737.80 in June 2026, the largest single contribution recorded so far. BOST Energies gave GH₵1 million in August 2026, and Fidelity Bank followed with a donation of GH₵200,000 in September 2026. These donations demonstrate the commitment of Ghana's banking and energy sectors to supporting the fund.
The Ghana Medical Trust Fund was created to support patients battling chronic and high-cost conditions such as cancer and kidney disease. These illnesses often require expensive, long-term treatment that can push households into poverty or force patients to abandon treatment altogether. The fund aims to ease the financial burden on patients and families.
For many Ghanaian families, the cost of treatment for conditions like leukemia can be crippling. Monthly medication bills for some patients can run as high as GH₵34,000. The Medical Trust Fund offers an additional avenue for support beyond the National Health Insurance Scheme, which does not cover all high-cost treatments.
The scale of donations reported so far suggests the fund is drawing sustained interest from Ghana's banking and energy sectors. However, it remains unclear how many patients have benefited to date or how the money is distributed among them. The WHO commendation highlights the fund's potential to make a real difference in the lives of patients.
Despite the progress made, several questions remain unanswered. Neither the WHO commendation nor available records specify how many patients have received support from the GMTF in its first year, what the total size of the fund is, or how disbursements are decided. Officials have not provided information on expected corporate donations or a target sum for the fund.
The Ghana Medical Trust Fund, widely referred to as Mahama Cares, was established to mobilise public and private resources to pay for treatment that ordinary Ghanaians and the existing health insurance system cannot fully cover. The WHO's assessment of the fund's first year carries weight as an independent, external endorsement of the programme's design and early results.
Key points
- The World Health Organization commends Ghana's Medical Trust Fund for attracting over GH₵7 million in corporate donations.
- The fund supports patients battling chronic and high-cost conditions such as cancer and kidney disease.
- The Medical Trust Fund offers an additional avenue for support beyond the National Health Insurance Scheme.
