Ghana has officially halted negotiations for a multi-year health aid deal with the United States (U.S).
It was gathered that Ghana halted U.S aid negotiations over major concerns regarding data sovereignty and citizen privacy.
Reports indicate that U.S. negotiators insisted on access to the personal health data of Ghanaian citizens as a condition for the funding.
The Ghanaian government, upholding its commitment to protecting sensitive information under its national Data Protection Act, refused these terms.
Sources close to the negotiations described the atmosphere as increasingly “hostile” in the final stages, with U.S. representatives allegedly applying heavy pressure to force compliance.
“The deal is dead,” the source said this week, noting that Ghana’s negotiating team included health officials, suggesting it may have been partly tied to health.
The US team became “hostile” and piled on “pressure” after Ghana pushed back on the demand for personal data, the source told the press.
The development comes as the United States has been striking new health aid deals across Africa after the administration of U.S President Donald Trump dismantled the long-standing USAID agency and curtailed the role of NGOs.
The collapse of these talks marks the latest friction point in the broader efforts of the Trump administration to overhaul foreign assistance strategies across the African continent.
The proposed agreement, which would have provided $109 million in funding over five years to support programs fighting HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis, faced a sudden impasse.
This outcome mirrors similar challenges faced by the U.S in other African nations. Recent reports suggest that comparable disputes over data sharing requirements have stalled or completely derailed similar initiatives in countries like Zimbabwe and Kenya. As the U.S pushes its new “America First Global Health Strategy”, these recurring conflicts suggest that the requirement for deep-level data access is becoming a major stumbling block for bilateral partnerships.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson told AFP in an emailed statement that the US State Department “does not disclose the details of ongoing bilateral negotiations” and suggested the funding would have supported “fighting HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and other infectious diseases”.
