The Ghana Health Service (GHS), in collaboration with the ECOWAS Regional Centre for Surveillance and Disease Control (ECOWAS RCSDC), has commenced a three-day technical workshop to train health promotion officers and key One Health stakeholders on the National Behavioural Intelligence and Infodemic Management (BIIM) System.
The initiative forms part of efforts to strengthen Ghana’s capacity to detect, analyse and respond to rumours, misinformation and public concerns through a structured behavioural intelligence system that supports evidence-based public health decision-making.
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Delivering the welcome address on behalf of the Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, the Acting Director of the Health Promotion Division, Mrs Mabel Kisiwaa Asafo, highlighted the need for stronger systems to identify and address misinformation before it affects public confidence in the health sector.
She noted that misinformation often spreads faster than accurate information, making early detection and timely response essential, particularly during disease outbreaks and other public health emergencies.
“Every rumour we fail to detect and address early has an impact on trust,” Mrs Asafo stated.
According to her, the BIIM system was developed to address gaps associated with limited funding for recurrent subscription of monitoring dashboards and fragmented approaches to identifying, analysing and responding to rumours and misinformation.
She explained that Ghana’s National Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for Infodemic Management have also been developed to guide the implementation of the BIIM system across all levels of the health system, from the national level to regions, districts and sub-districts.
“The BIIM system gives us the tools and structured processes to monitor public perceptions and concerns, detect and verify rumours and misinformation as they emerge, and transform that information into actionable intelligence to guide evidence-based decision-making,” she said.
Mrs Asafo urged participants to actively engage in the practical sessions and group exercises, describing the training as an opportunity to gain hands-on experience with a system expected to become an important component of Ghana’s public health response.
Speaking on behalf of UNICEF, Ms Charity Nikoi encouraged participants to focus on the core objectives of behavioural intelligence and infodemic management while collaborating across sectors, including public relations, surveillance and risk communication.
She urged regional officers to share the knowledge and training materials with colleagues at the regional, district and sub-district levels to improve community-level information gathering and strengthen Ghana’s ability to respond to emerging rumours.
The Executive Director of the ECOWAS Regional Centre for Surveillance and Disease Control, Dr Mamadou Diarrasouba, described the workshop as a significant milestone in strengthening risk communication and infodemic management capacities in Ghana and the ECOWAS region.
He said misinformation continues to spread rapidly in today’s information environment and has a direct impact on public health outcomes, making behavioural intelligence an essential tool for emergency preparedness and response.
“Our focus on building resilient behavioural intelligence and infodemic management systems is both urgent and essential,” Dr Diarrasouba stated.
He explained that the technical mission combines practical capacity building, digital solutions and institutional collaboration to support countries in establishing sustainable infodemic management systems.
Dr Diarrasouba commended the Government of Ghana, the Ghana Health Service and technical partners for their commitment to building a robust national system. He also acknowledged support from the National Public Health Agency of Sierra Leone, describing the partnership as an example of South-to-South collaboration within the region.
The BIIM system, first introduced in Sierra Leone in 2023, is designed to collect and analyse information on what communities are saying, feeling and believing about health issues and translate these insights into actionable intelligence.
The system is expected to help monitor public perceptions, detect misinformation, strengthen Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) interventions, support early warning systems, improve outbreak preparedness and response, promote public trust and enhance One Health coordination.
The workshop brought together Health Promotion Officers, Public Relations Officers, and Planning, Policy, Monitoring and Evaluation (PPME) officers from the Ghana Health Service. Representatives from the Veterinary Services Department.
National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), the World Health Organisation (WHO), UNICEF and other partner institutions also participated in the training aimed at supporting nationwide implementation of the BIIM system.
