Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, has raised concerns over the operations of Zipline, the drone delivery company contracted to supply medical and other essential items across Ghana.
Speaking at the Government Accountability Series on Monday, December 1, 2025, the Minister disclosed that while government has invested heavily in Zipline’s services, a review of its activities shows limited focus on its core mandate of reaching remote areas and providing emergency support.
“Apart from saying this on the floor of the house, government of Ghana has paid a lot of money to the zip line. Apart from that, their services was to concentrate on the hard to reach areas and emergency services. But upon review of the activities, what we have realized is that the hard to reach areas constitute only 12% of the activities. 12%, one, two. And emergency services is 4% of the activities,” Mr. Akandoh said.
He further revealed that Zipline’s drones have been used to deliver a wide range of items beyond medical supplies. “It would interest you to know some of the items they fly. Items like condom, blood donor cards, not blood, blood donor cards. Mosquito nets, food and nutrition items, adhesive tapes, syringes and needles, education materials, among other things. Textbooks, exercise books, uniforms, and a lot more,” he noted.
The Minister stressed that government is committed to ensuring value for money in its engagement with the company. “So when we came to office, we think that there must be value for money. And therefore we are engaging them. So if you hear that we are not engaging zip line, it’s not true. We have met more than three times and we are still engaging them to know how we can have value for money,” he added.
Mr. Akandoh’s comments highlight ongoing scrutiny of Zipline’s role in Ghana’s health delivery system, as government seeks to balance innovation with efficiency and accountability in the use of public funds.
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