The Ghana Health Service’s (GHS) District Health Information Management System (DHIMS2) has been restored following the settlement of an outstanding $64,000 payment to its cloud hosting provider, the Ministry of Health announced on Friday, November 28.
Ministry spokesperson Tony Goodman confirmed that the system had been shut down by the hosting company due to unpaid fees, but that the issue was resolved after the Health Minister directed the GHS to secure the necessary funds.
Goodman explained that the debt had accumulated while the GHS was under investigation, which delayed the payment because the Service could not make further disbursements without clearance. "When a project is under investigation, you must seek permission before making any further payments. That is what delayed the payment; otherwise, it would have been made earlier," he said.
He added that the shutdown affected only the DHIMS2 platform, which stores public health data collected at the district level, such as immunisation records and home‑visit reports. The Ghana Health Information Management System used in hospitals for patient records remained operational, as did the Ministry’s national data repository that aggregates information from all health system levels.
"Yesterday, the Ghana Health Service, which manages the DHIMS2, issued a statement indicating that the platform was down because the company hosting the system had shut it down," Goodman said on Eyewitness News. "When the Minister got wind of it, he quickly asked them to look for the money and pay. That has been done, and as I speak to you, the system has been restored," he added.
DHIMS2 serves as a critical repository for district‑level public health information, enabling management and analysis of data from immunisation programmes and community health visits. With the platform back online, health officials can resume real‑time data collection and reporting, which is essential for monitoring disease outbreaks and allocating resources.
Health officials will continue to monitor the system’s performance and ensure that all future payments to the hosting provider are processed promptly to avoid another interruption.
