MoH to roll out volunteer programme for over 6,000 unemployed health graduates
The Ministry of Health (MoH) has announced plans to roll out a volunteer programme aimed at deploying health professionals to rural and underserved communities, particularly targeting more than 6,000 unemployed health graduates.
According to the Ministry, the initiative will include graduates from 2022 onwards who were not captured in the ongoing recruitment process for the 2021 batch of nurses and midwives.
Speaking at a press briefing in Accra on Monday, May 18, 2026, the Director of Human Resources at the MoH, Frederick Mensah-Acheampong, said implementation will begin in the coming weeks alongside a mop-up recruitment exercise to fill remaining vacancies.
He explained that participants in the volunteer scheme will receive stipends and will also be given priority consideration in future formal recruitment exercises.
“These volunteers will receive stipends, and they will also be prioritised when we conduct the main recruitment,” he stated, without disclosing the amount involved or the specific terms of the arrangement.
Mr. Mensah-Acheampong added that nurse assistant preventive cadres will be the first to be considered under the programme, followed by other assistant health categories, as part of efforts to strengthen preventive and community healthcare delivery.
He also disclosed that a separate recruitment exercise will be launched for medical officers to serve in rural and deprived areas, though he did not specify the number of doctors to be recruited.
He noted that the initiative is intended to address a growing backlog of unemployed health professionals across the country.
According to him, about 105,000 trained health workers are currently unemployed, a rise from the 74,000 previously cited by Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh in Parliament in 2025.
Mr. Mensah-Acheampong said the Ministry plans to distribute available financial clearance across all professional categories, regardless of the number of vacancies available at a given time.
“Even if there is only one slot, it will be shared among all categories so everyone benefits in some way,” he said.
He further indicated that successful applicants under the current recruitment exercise will report to district health directorates for interviews and document verification before formally taking up their posts.
He confirmed that newly recruited health workers are expected to begin duties on July 1, 2026, adding that “no one will work without being paid.”
The Ministry also expects additional financial clearance from the Ministry of Finance later in the year to support further recruitment rounds.
Mr. Mensah-Acheampong advised health professionals to ensure their details are properly updated on the recruitment portal, cautioning against waiting until recruitment periods are announced before making corrections.
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