Our charity work in Ghana

We work with governments and local organisations in Ghana and countries across Africa to deliver vital charity work and make sure everyone has the chance to thrive.

Ghana is the second-most populated country in West Africa, boasting consistent economic growth and political stability.

Specialist health care services in Ghana are centred in the country’s largest cities, Accra and Kumasi. While there is a hospital in every district, people living in more rural areas can still have difficulty accessing medical care because of a lack of resources and qualified staff.

Infectious diseases are one of the main reasons people seek medical care in Ghana. In 2018, the country announced it had eliminated trachoma, although river blindness, lymphatic filariasis and schistosomiasis are still endemic, putting millions of people at risk of blindness and long-term illness.

In 2022, Ghana co-hosted the Global Disability Summit, demonstrating its commitment to upholding disability rights and disability-inclusive development. Despite this, people with disabilities in Ghana still face stigma and discrimination.

15 million people need treatment for at least one neglected tropical disease

8 million people need treatment for river blindness

8% of Ghana’s population has a disability

Sources: ESPEN, UN PRPD

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What are the challenges in Ghana, and how can these be addressed?

A car travels along a wide, dusty road in rural Ghana.

Infectious diseases

People in Ghana are at a high risk of neglected tropical diseases.

Several neglected tropical diseases are endemic in Ghana, putting millions of people at risk of blindness and disability. We’ve already helped to eliminate trachoma in the country, and our ongoing work focuses on protecting people from river blindness and lymphatic filariasis, and treating people who are already infected.

How we’re tackling disease in Ghana

Distributing medication

Sightsavers has supported the Ghana health service to give out free medication that protects people from diseases like river blindness and lymphatic filariasis.
What is mass drug administration?

Training volunteers

We’ve trained local volunteers to distribute medication in the community, check people for eye disease and refer them for treatment where needed.
Learn about volunteers

Research

Monitoring and collecting data about the prevalence of neglected tropical diseases can help us learn which communities we still need to reach.
About our in-house research team

Inclusion and equality

Disability is highly stigmatised in Ghana.

People with disabilities often face discrimination in society, which prevents them from accessing opportunities equally. Our charity work on disability rights in Ghana focuses on ensuring everyone is able to go to school, find a job and get health treatment when needed.

Our inclusion work in Ghana

Inclusive employment

Sightsavers works with partners to make Ghana’s labour market more disability inclusive and provide skills training for people with disabilities.
About inclusive employment

Social behaviour change

We tackle stigma around disability by running innovative programmes in Ghana that help to change social attitudes within communities.
Our work with inclusion ambassadors

Working in partnership

We work with disability organisations to design our projects, and we make sure people with disabilities are consulted at every stage.
Read our programme blog

“In my years as a disability advocate and activist, I’ve learned getting angry needs to be accompanied by getting active.”

Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame is Sightsavers’ global advocacy manager for social inclusion, and chairs the UN’s disability committee.

How you can help

Our charity work in Ghana has already helped to eliminate trachoma, but there’s still more we need to do.

With your support, we want to strengthen the health system, protect people from disease and create a ripple effect in Ghana, so everyone can learn, earn and thrive. To do this, we need your help.

Charity donations, legacies, corporate partnerships and gifts from charitable foundations are a vital source of funding for our programmes in Ghana. We also welcome opportunities to work in partnership with governments, institutions and development organisations.

Contact us: If you have any questions about our work in Ghana, would like more information about our programmes or wish to discuss ways you can donate or support us, email [email protected]

Latest stories from Ghana

News / Fighting disease /

Benin and Ghana, two of the countries where Sightsavers works, have been recognised for their success in wiping out several diseases that are prevalent in poor and marginalised communities.

July 2023

Blogs / Disability and inclusion /

Sightsavers’ Peter Anomah-Kordieh Kwasi shares successes and what we learned from the Ghana Somubi Dwumadie participation project, which Sightsavers supported as a partner to improve the lives of people with disabilities.

Peter Kwasi, June 2023

Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame speaking into a microphone.

News / Disability and inclusion /

Gertrude, who is Sightsavers’ global advocacy manager for social inclusion, becomes the first African woman to lead the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

March 2023

A group photo of people involved in the Ghana Somubi Dwumadie programme.

Blogs / Disability and inclusion /

Sightsavers’ Peter Anomah-Kordieh Kwasi shares the journey that led to the establishment of a parliamentary caucus that champions disability issues.

Peter Kwasi, November 2022

A large group of people gather together for a photo outside a building. Some people are seated, some are standing and there is a man in a wheelchair at the front of the group.

Blogs / Disability and inclusion /

Sightsavers’ Joseph Mensah explains how the Ghana Somubi Dwumadie programme is helping to change negative social attitudes and behaviour.

Joseph Mensah, April 2022

The Kigali Convention Centre in Rwanda is lit up in purple light for World NTD Day.

News / Fighting disease /

On 30 January 2022, Sightsavers staff and supporters joined the global event to raise awareness about eliminating neglected tropical diseases.

February 2022

Discover where Sightsavers works in Africa and Asia

Where we work

We protect sight, fight disease and make sure everyone can claim their rights.

Find out how your support can make a huge difference and change lives.

Sightsavers in Ghana

15 million people need treatment for at least one neglected tropical disease

8 million people need treatment for river blindness

8% of Ghana’s population has a disability

What are the challenges in Ghana, and how can these be addressed?

Infectious diseases