Lightwave refutes Akandoh’s claims on national e-health project
Lightwave E-Healthcare Solutions Limited has denied allegations made by Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh regarding the management of Ghana’s National E-Healthcare Programme and the Lightwave Health Information Management System (LHIMS).
In a detailed statement dated Thursday, October 30, 2025, the company described the Minister’s comments made in Parliament on October 28 and repeated during the Presidential Accountability Series the following day as “false and misleading”.
According to Lightwave, the Minister’s statements misrepresent key facts and risk undermining Ghana’s progress in e-health digitisation.
Responding to the Minister’s claim that the electronic medical records of Ghanaians were being “managed from India” without access by the Ministry, Lightwave stated that this was completely untrue.
“The electronic health data of patients generated through the programme remain the exclusive property of the Ministry of Health,” the company emphasised.
“All data is stored in a central repository located at the Ministry’s data centre in Accra not in India or any foreign jurisdiction.”
Lightwave further explained that while the Ministry owns the data, the LHIMS software used to manage it remains the company’s intellectual property, which is licensed to the government under contract.
The company also rejected the Minister’s claim that it had received 77% of the $100 million contract sum while completing less than half of the work.
Lightwave described the figures as misleading, explaining that the 950 health facilities covered under the contract were not of equal value or cost.
“For example, the successful deployment in just four teaching hospitals accounted for 21% of the total contract value,” the company noted.
By the time the contract expired on December 31, 2024, Lightwave said it had completed installations in all teaching and regional hospitals, as well as 243 district hospitals, which entitled it to approximately 72% of the total contract value.
Addressing project delays, Lightwave cited prolonged approval processes, late payments, and disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic as the main factors.
“Although the Ministry was contractually required to make payments within 36 days of invoicing, in practice payments took an average of 10 months,” it stated.
“These delays created severe financial strain on the project.”
Lightwave also dismissed accusations of supplying substandard or inadequate equipment, asserting that all hardware met the required contractual specifications, was inspected, and carried valid warranties.
On the issue of laptops, the company clarified that the contractual requirement was 9,544 units, not 13,172 as the Minister claimed, and that deliveries so far matched the number of deployed facilities.
Contrary to the Minister’s statement that the government owed Lightwave no money, the company revealed it was still unpaid for eight months of post-contract work.
Despite this, Lightwave said it continues to support more than 200 active health facilities using the LHIMS platform, including the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital, and the Eastern Regional Hospital.
Lightwave urged an end to what it described as “uninformed commentary” and called for a constructive resolution to the ongoing disagreement.
“The LHIMS has operated efficiently for nearly nine years. We remain ready to work with the Ministry to complete the remaining installations and ensure continuity of care for Ghanaians,” the statement concluded.