Zipline Ghana Limited has shut down three of its medical drone delivery centers due to the government’s outstanding debt of GHS170million, www.ghanaweb.com understands.
The action by Zipline Ghana, a subsidiary of the American drone company, Zipline, is effective Tuesday, November 25, 2025.
The affected centers are Anum Distribution Center, Sehwi-Wiaso Center, and Kete-Krachi Center in the Oti Region which serves various regions in Ghana, including Volta, Eastern, Western North, Western, Ashanti, Central, Ahafo, Bono and Oti Regions.
Drawing Parliament’s attention to the issue in his contribution to the debate on the 2026 Budget and Economic Policy of the Government of Ghana, Dr. Ayew Afriyie, Ranking Member on the Health Committee and New Patriotic Party Member of Parliament (MP) for Effiduase-Asokore in the Ashanti Region, described the situation as “terrifying”.
“This news is terrifying to the ordinary person living in the remote parts of this country. As a matter of fact, we must do something urgently about this because the shutdown starts today, and this is not right”, he noted while looking deep into the eyes of the Minister of Health, Hon. Kwabena Mintah Akandoh who appeared uncomfortable in his seat.
Referencing a letter Zipline Ghana signed by its Country Director, Daniel Kwaku Merki wrote to the Minister of Health dated Monday, November 24, 2025, Dr. Ayew revealed to the house that the shutdown was spurred by lack of engagement by the government in addition to its inability to pay its debt.
“There has been no engagement and also inability for the government to provide funds for Zipline. The allocation this year was GHS20 million knowing very well that you owe Zipline as of now GHS175 million”.
The situation, he noted, means that Zipline would not be supplying blood, medicines, vaccines and antivenom to the whole of Western North, parts of Western Region, parts of Central Region, Ashanti Region, Ahafo, and Bono Regions.
That notwithstanding, parts of Savannah and Afram Plains would be affected.
“Mr. Speaker, efffective today, people are going to die needlessly because of shortage of blood, medication, and vaccines”, an emotional Dr. Afriyie noted, appealing to the Government to urgently address the issue.
The situation is said to impact hundreds of thousands of Ghanaians mostly living in the remote parts of the country and who the introduction of Zipline services provided a lifeline to the healthcare.
In a separate letter addressed to its stakeholders, Zipline noted that “This difficult decision follows several yeas of outstanding payments and unclear settlement timelines from the Ministry of Health. While we deeply appreciate the critical role our service plays in healthcare delivery across the country, financial constraints have left us unable to maintain full operations across all six distribution centers”.
Mr. Merki described the action taken by Zipline as “a necessary step to ensure that long-term sustainability of our operations and is not a retreat from our mission.”
Zipline Ghana has been a lifeline for healthcare in remote areas, delivering over 800,000 shipments since 2019, including 8 million medical products, 17 million vaccine doses, and 23,000 units of blood. Studies show their services have reduced maternal mortality by 56.4% and medical stockouts by 60%.
