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GhanaWeb launches campaign for legislation on organ harvesting, donation and transplantation to save lives
Digital news platform, GhanaWeb, in partnership with the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital is embarking on an aggressive campaign ensuring that parliament passes a comprehensive legislation to guide organ harvesting, organ donation and organ transplantation in the country.
Organ donation and transplantation is a crucial aspect of healthcare that can save lives and improve the quality of life for many individuals. In Ghana, organ donation and transplantation are recognized as essential medical interventions, and efforts are being made to promote awareness and legislation in this area.
Currently, Ghana lacks any proper laws that will make way for human organs to be harvested, donated and transplanted.
The lack of legislation according to seasoned medical practitioners who spoke to GhanaWeb is a major source of worry and in many instances lead to avoidable deaths in the major hospitals.
Earlier this year, the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital made a breakthrough, performing two major kidney transplants by a wholly-assembled Ghanaian medical team -the first of its kind in Ghana.
But even with that breakthrough, patients who need kidney transplants for example can only do so if the donor is a close family relation.
This is because there are no laws that permit doctors to accept a kidney from 3rd parties who are not related to the patient.
The passage of a law or legislation will however open up the pool of donors wider and thereby save many lives.
It will also allow for people to sign up to willing donate parts of their organs in the event they die in order for those organs to save other people’s lives.
In this light, GhanaWeb has decided to embark on a campaign to promote the need for legislation regarding the donation of all body organs.
Currently, there is a draft legislation document developed by senior medical personnel at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital that focuses on organ harvesting and donation in the country.
This, according to a Urologist at the Korle Bu Teaching hospital has been reviewed and fine-tuned by the various health ministries and is currently awaiting legal drafting.
Legal drafting, according to Professor Matthew Kyei will ensure that the draft document will be written in legal language and then presented to parliament as a draft to be considered and then subsequently approved and passed.
According to him, the legal document, if passed by parliament to become a Bill, will ensure that a legal framework is provided for the harvesting and use of donated organs to save more lives.
GhanaWeb’s Organ harvesting, donation and transplantation campaign seeks to collaborate with all relevant stakeholders including ministries, officials at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital and other hospitals in the country, survivors and beneficiaries of organ donation, parliamentary members and government officials to ensure that there’s enough awareness and urgency for the passage of legislation regarding organ donation.
The Bill for Organ Donation if approved by parliament and gets presidential assent seeks to among other things;
Allow room for people aside close family members to donate organs with their consent.
Also, it will allow for people to give consent for their organs to be harvested in the event that they die; what is called Cadaveric (organ donation involving taking organs (heart, lungs, kidney, liver, pancreas) as well as tissue (skin, corneas, tendons from bone) from brain dead and heart dead people.
Additionally, it will prevent the exploitation of people for human organs (where people are forced, manipulated or killed for their organs).
Finally, it will provide regulations of how organ donation banks will use organs that are harvested and stored such that there is no discrimination.
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GEXIM deepens relations with US EXIM Bank
A management team of the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) led by the Acting Chief Executive, Sylvester Mensah met with the leadership of the Export–Import Bank of the United States (US EXIM) on Wednesday April 23, 2025 in Washington DC, United States of America.
The Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM, Mr. James C. Cruse and Vice President, International Relations, Ms. Isabel Galdiz received the GEXIM delegation, which included Deputy CEO for Banking, Mr. Moses Klu Mensah and Head of International Cooperation, Mr. Jonathan Christopher Koney at the headquarters of US EXIM.
The meeting offered the GEXIM team the opportunity to share the strategic direction of the Bank in line with the resetting agenda of the President of the Republic, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama for the repositioning of the Ghanaian economy into an export-led one by providing the requisite investment to Ghanaian businesses.
Mr. James C. Cruse expressed US EXIM’s eagerness to deepen its existing relations with GEXIM and proposed the signing of a new Cooperative Framework Agreement following the expiration of a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2019 to utilize US EXIM’s medium term loan guarantees to procure machinery by GEXIM for qualified Ghanaian Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).
Mr.Sylvester Mensah thanked the Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM for hosting the GEXIM delegation and reaffirmed the Ghanaian government’s commitment to strengthening trade and investment between Ghana and its global partners for economic transformation of Ghana with GEXIM playing a pivotal role.
The two teams will be meeting on the sidelines of the 2025 US EXIM Annual Conference on 29th and April 30, 2025 to explore possible areas of collaboration and matching Ghanaian businesses to American companies. The meeting ended with an exchange of gifts.
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Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation –Pres.Mahama
President John Dramani Mahama has expressed concern over the misuse of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) for personal financial gain by individuals in leadership positions.
Speaking during a meeting with Chief Executives of specified entities under the State Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA) on Thursday, March 13, the President directly attributed the dire state of SOEs to their leadership, accusing chief executives, management teams, and governing boards of prioritising personal enrichment over organisational efficiency.
He pointed to bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures as factors draining public funds while SOEs continue to rely on government bailouts.
“Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation by appointees. The chief executives, management, and boards of these enterprises are responsible for this situation. Some SOEs have become perennial loss-makers, draining public funds with bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures while relying on government bailouts as if entitled to them. Many of these entities are at their lowest point in the entire history of the Fourth Republic,” he said.
President Mahama further noted that many SOEs have been plagued by inefficiencies, corruption, and mismanagement, leading to consistent financial losses. He cited the 2023 State Ownership Report by the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), which highlighted systemic inefficiencies and wasteful expenditures within these entities.
He therefore reaffirmed his commitment to reforming under-performing SOEs and ensuring they serve national interests.
He warned that loss-making SOEs will no longer be tolerated and will either be merged, privatised, or closed.
“I will assess you based on your performance. If you do not align with the pace of the reset agenda, you may be asked to step aside. If that adds to the horror movie, so be it,” he added.
Source: Myjoyonline.com
