The Governing Board for the Ghana Liver-Hepatitis Fund has been inaugurated with the objective of effectively scaling up Ghana’s response against viral hepatitis and liver health cases.

The newly constituted Governing Board is to actively coordinate the implementation of interventions to drastically reduce hepatitis and liver cases by leading a successful roll out of strategies under the Ghana Liver-Hepatitis Fund.

Launched in July 2018, the Ghana Liver-Hepatitis Fund, a collaborative initiative between the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and Save Your Liver Foundation (SLFG), seeks to mobilise resources and build strong partnership for the combat against liver cancer and viral hepatitis which are top ranking killer ailments.

The members of the Board, which is yet to elect its chairman, are Dr. Samuel Kaba Akoriyea, Director, Institutional Care Division; Dr. Badu Sarkodie, Director, Public Health Division; Dr. Abraham Hogson, Director. Research Division; Dr. Emmanuel Dzotsi, Program Manager, Viral Hepatitis Control Programme; Mrs. Ramatu Ude Umanta, Director, Finance Division; Mr. Jacob Andoh Acquah, Officer, Public Relations Unit, all of the GHS.

The rest are Mr. Nyaaba-Aweeba Azongo, President, Save Your Liver Foundation; Dr. Nathan Quarcoo, General Manager, Southern Sector, Save Your Liver Foundation; and Dr. Ernest Konadu Asiedu, Head, Quality Management Unit, Ministry of Health.

As part of its mandate, the Board is to promote the integrity of the project, support efforts at fund mobilization and the building of the requisite quality control mechanisms with the appropriate mix of Departments under the Ghana Health Service to implement the six-intervention areas of the Fund in order to close gaps in prevention and treatment.

Inaugurating the Board, the Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Dr. Anthony Nsiah-Asare, in a statement read on his behalf, expressed confidence in the ability of the members to ensure the success of the Fund.

Dr. Awoonor (third left)  inaugurating the Board members on behalf of the Director General

He said Ghana’s Liver-Hepatitis response is in line with the WHO Regional Framework for Action on Viral Hepatitis (2016-2020), which has as its overarching goal to eliminate viral Hepatitis as a major Public Health Threat by 2030 in the African Region, and therefore called on all stakeholders to support the various interventions.

Dr. Koku Awoonor, Director of Policy Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation at the GHS, for his part, urged the Board to roll out active strategies against hepatitis and liver cancer, for the benefit of Ghanaians.

Mr. Nyaaba-Aweeba Azongo, President, Save Your Liver Foundation, in his statement to, described the Board as the propelling force behind the Fund.

“With the inauguration of this high-profile Board constituting the cream of Ghana Health Service leadership, the requisite experience and expertise would be harnessed to ensure the success of this initiative,” he added

The GL-H Fund is a Multi-Purpose Fund established as a central pool for sustainable mobilization of funds for the implementation of Approved Regional Coordinated Liver-Viral Hepatitis Action Programmes through Ghana’s Health systems to reach out to the population in need.