NCD Alliance Ghana, a civil society organisation (CSO), has joined the global observance of the 2026 Global Week for Action on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) with a call on the Government to accelerate efforts to prevent and control NCDs and mental health conditions.

The Global Week for Action on NCDs is being observed from August 31 to September 4, 2026, on the theme: "Leadership in Focus: From Commitments to Delivery."

A statement issued by the Alliance urged the government to translate its commitments on NCDs and mental health into practical interventions that people could access and benefit from.

The statement noted that the call was particularly important for Ghana, where NCDs account for more than 45 per cent of all deaths, placing a significant and growing burden on individuals, families, communities and the health system.

It said hypertension affected between 20 and 30 per cent of adults, while recent Ministry of Health data indicated that 48 per cent of reported stroke cases occurred among men aged between 30 and 49 years.

According to the Alliance, the statistics underscored the need to strengthen prevention, early detection, treatment, rehabilitation and long-term care, while advancing Universal Health Coverage (UHC) reforms that integrate NCD and mental health services into primary healthcare systems.

The statement acknowledged the government's efforts to strengthen the national response to NCDs through initiatives such as the Free Primary Health Care (FPHC) policy and the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, popularly known as MahamaCares.

It said the immediate priority was to build on those gains by strengthening implementation and accountability across the continuum of care.

“The priority now is to build on these gains by strengthening implementation and accountability across the continuum of care, ensuring that prevention and early detection are linked to timely diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and long-term care, with appropriate referral and follow-up,” it stated.

The Alliance reminded the government of the commitments made at the Fourth United Nations High-Level Meeting on NCDs and Mental Health in 2025, stressing that those commitments must go beyond policy pronouncements and be reflected in the planning, financing and delivery of health services.

It noted that with only four years remaining to the 2030 deadline for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Ghana must accelerate progress towards SDG Target 3.4, which seeks to reduce premature mortality from NCDs by one-third through prevention and treatment while promoting mental health and well-being.

The statement further urged the Government to address the broader social, economic, environmental and commercial determinants of NCDs.

It identified tobacco use, alcohol consumption, unhealthy diets, physical inactivity and air pollution as major risk factors that required policy interventions beyond individual behavioural change.

The Alliance said the government should continue efforts to integrate mental health services into primary healthcare delivery, improve access to care for vulnerable populations and ensure that equity remained central to Universal Health Coverage reforms.

According to the statement, this would require the full operationalisation and adequate resourcing of the Mental Health Fund established under the Mental Health Act, 2012 (Act 846).

The Fund, it noted, was intended to support the care and management of people with mental health conditions through rehabilitation services, infrastructure development, training, capacity building and research.

Meanwhile, the National Coordinator of NCD Alliance Ghana, Labram Musah, described the MahamaCares policy as a transformative intervention that provided an important foundation for specialised chronic disease care.

He, however, expressed concern that current financing arrangements might not guarantee the long-term sustainability of the programme and called for the earmarking of excise tax revenues to support its implementation.

Mr Musah also advocated the meaningful participation of civil society organisations and persons living with NCDs and mental health conditions in policy formulation, implementation and monitoring.

He said such inclusion would help ensure that national interventions responded to the realities and needs of affected populations.

The Alliance said the Global Week for Action on NCDs offered Ghana an opportunity to strengthen implementation efforts and move from commitments to measurable outcomes.

It therefore called on the Government to sustain investments in prevention, equitable access to quality NCD and mental health services, sustainable domestic financing, and stronger data systems and accountability mechanisms.

The statement specifically called for stronger implementation and enforcement of the Tobacco Control Regulations, 2016 (L.I. 2247), as well as the implementation of the national food policy package, including front-of-pack warning labelling, marketing restrictions, fiscal measures and food procurement standards.