President John Dramani Mahama has directed Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson to make provision for GH¢300 million in the 2027 budget to complete the Police Hospital expansion project, which has been stalled for 22 years.
The government has terminated the contract with the original contractor after prolonged disagreements and cost overruns. It will now complete the project itself by the end of 2027.
President Mahama made the announcement on Tuesday, October 13, at the commissioning of a new 85-bed ward complex at the Ghana Police Hospital in Accra.
He said the decision was meant to end years of delay and bring the expanded facility into service. The state, he said, would no longer wait on a contractual arrangement that had produced little over two decades.
“The contract has been going on for 22 years. We have finally brought it to an end.”
President John Dramani Mahama
Contract Terminated After Years of Disputes
The finance minister has been tasked with making the money available. The approximately GH¢200 million requested is the amount required to finish the work, according to the President.
The original contractor’s agreement ended after prolonged disagreements and rising costs. With the contract terminated, the government has taken direct responsibility for the project, removing the dispute that kept the expansion from reaching completion.
Mahama said government would now see the work through itself. The end of 2027 is the target date for completion.
What the Expansion Will Deliver
Once finished, the expansion will add 106 beds to the hospital. Combined with existing capacity, the total will rise to more than 300 beds.
The project includes a 12-bed intensive care unit and a new accident and emergency centre. Patients will be served through 11 consulting rooms, with four of them set aside for paediatric care.
Diagnostic capacity will be strengthened through MRI and CT scan machines. On the surgical side, the hospital will gain three general surgical theatres, a specialised orthopaedic theatre and an endoscopy unit. The plan also provides for a mortuary with a capacity of 222 bodies.
Strengthening Specialised and Emergency Care
President Mahama said the added infrastructure would improve the hospital’s ability to provide specialised medical care and respond to emergencies.
The intensive care unit and the emergency centre are central to that goal. Together with the scanning equipment and surgical theatres, they would allow the hospital to handle a wider range of cases within its own walls, from trauma and orthopaedic injuries to paediatric consultations and endoscopic procedures.
The newly commissioned 85-bed ward complex is the first visible product of the wider upgrade. Its opening gives the hospital additional inpatient space while the remaining components are completed.
To support the hospital’s emergency response services, the President also announced the donation of two new ambulances. They are meant to complement the facility’s expanded operations, strengthening patient transport as the hospital’s capacity grows.
Ambulances extend a hospital’s reach beyond its gates. With a new accident and emergency centre planned, the vehicles will form part of the chain that moves patients from the point of injury or illness to treatment.
Project Decades in the Making
The expansion’s 22-year history makes the President’s announcement significant. A facility that was conceived to increase the hospital’s capacity has remained incomplete across multiple administrations, while demand for health services has continued to grow.
By committing public funds in the 2027 budget and setting a completion deadline, the government has attached a figure and a date to a project that had long lacked both a clear funding path and a firm finish line.
“We’re going to complete it ourselves. I’ve asked the Minister for Finance to provide in the 2027 budget approximately 300 million Ghana cedis.”
President John Dramani Mahama
The next step is the 2027 budget, where the finance minister is expected to carry the GH¢200 million provision. Once the funds are approved and released, work on the remaining components can proceed toward the end-of-2027 target.
When complete, the expanded Ghana Police Hospital will hold more than 300 beds and offer intensive care, emergency, diagnostic and surgical services under one roof. For a project that has waited 22 years, the government’s message is that the wait is nearing its end.
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