Accra, Ghana — The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) is supporting Ghana to strengthen its Public Health Emergency Operations Centres (PHEOCs), which coordinate information, expertise and resources during health emergencies.
Over the past two years, Africa CDC has supported Ghana with equipment, communications and data infrastructure, operational systems and workforce development for emergency preparedness and response.
The latest support brought together 50 national and subnational technical experts in Accra from 21-25 September to improve PHEOC operations management, and the use of the Incident Management System (IMS), in line with the 2022 Lusaka Call to Action on strengthening PHEOCs across Africa.
Participants were drawn from the Ghana Health Service, the Ministry of Health, veterinary and environmental services, immigration and port health, local government, emergency services, the military and police. Also represented were the World Health Organization (WHO), the African Field Epidemiology Network (AFENET), the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and civil society organisations.
During the official opening, Dr Franklin Asiedu-Bekoe, the Director of Public Health at the Ghana Health Service, stressed that effective PHEOCs require more than facilities and equipment. Rather, they need clear governance, trained personnel, adequate resources, operational procedures and regular testing.
“Our success will not be measured simply by the number of PHEOCs established, strategic and operational documents produced, equipment provided, or personnel trained,” he said. “It will be measured by how effectively our systems work together to anticipate threats, detect events, assess risks, make timely decisions, mobilise resources, coordinate response and protect the health and lives of the people of Ghana.”
The training covered the five core functions of Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC) management – command, operations, planning, logistics, and finance and administration – under an institutionalised Incident Management System (IMS).Participants also worked on emergency planning, information and resource management, situation reporting, standard operating procedures and simulation exercises.
Dr Mathew Tut Moses, the Principal Programme Officer for Preparedness and Response at Africa CDC, commended Ghana’s investment in public health emergency management and called for the knowledge gained through the training to be shared more widely.
“Every participant here is a multiplier. These competencies must flow to the district teams, subnational coordinators and frontline responders who didn’t attend this training,” he said.
Looking ahead, the Africa CDC West Africa Regional Coordinating Centre committed to supporting Ghana in updating its emergency plans, strengthening PHEOC staffing and surge capacity, and conducting more simulation exercises. This will include developing a costed national plan for regular training and exercises.
Africa CDC also encouraged the Ministry of Health and Ghana Health Service to sustain these gains through mentoring, regular simulation exercises, and structured knowledge-sharing. The skills developed would be extended through the training to district teams, subnational coordinators and frontline responders.