Health Ministry: Newly recruited health workers to start work July 1, 2026
The Ministry of Health (MoH) has announced that newly recruited health professionals will assume duty on July 1, 2026, following the closure of its recruitment portal for applications last week.
The ministry explained that a mop-up exercise will be conducted, during which the portal will be reopened to fill outstanding vacancies nationwide. It noted that the mop-up will also include positions in teaching and psychiatric hospitals, which were excluded from the main recruitment process.
Speaking at a press briefing in Accra on Monday, May 18, 2026, the Director of Human Resources at the MoH, Frederick Mensah-Acheampong, said successful applicants will first report to their respective district health directorates for interviews and verification of documents before formally taking up their posts. He explained that the process is mainly to confirm credentials and assess readiness to commence work.
“Basically, the interview is to confirm the documentation of the professionals and their readiness to start work,” he said, adding that “those who report early will receive their salaries in July.”
Mr. Mensah-Acheampong further explained that teaching hospitals and specialised facilities, including psychiatric hospitals, were deliberately excluded from the initial portal to avoid over-concentration of applicants in urban centres at the expense of rural postings. He added that the mop-up exercise will address about 87 unfilled vacancies in the northern regions of the country.
He also revealed that there were no successful applicants for five certified registered anaesthetist positions, while more than 80 vacancies for registered public health nurses remain unfilled after the main recruitment phase.
According to him, the recruitment portal will only be reopened after the mop-up exercise if additional financial clearance is granted by the Ministry of Finance, expected later in the year.
He further announced the introduction of a volunteer programme for over 6,000 health professionals who completed training from 2022 onwards but have not yet been absorbed into the public sector. Under the scheme, participants will receive stipends and be given priority consideration in future recruitment exercises.
“The volunteer recruitment will cover over 6,000 prospective professionals who completed school from 2022 to now,” he said.
He clarified that graduates from the 2021 batch currently being recruited are not eligible for the volunteer programme.
Mr. Mensah-Acheampong added that nurse assistant preventive cadres will be prioritised under the arrangement, followed by other assistant health categories to strengthen community healthcare delivery under the government’s free primary healthcare policy.
He also urged health professionals to regularly update their details on the recruitment portal rather than waiting for recruitment periods to make corrections.
Additionally, he announced that a separate recruitment exercise for medical officers will soon be launched to serve rural and underserved communities.
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