The Human Milk Bank at the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC) is calling on lactating mothers with excess breast milk to donate milk to save the lives of premature and vulnerable babies.
According to Dr Ophelia Ganyaglo, a paediatrician at the UGMC, donor breast milk has become a lifeline for several newborns whose mothers cannot breastfeed due to death, illness, surgery of lack of milk production.
She disclosed that the Human Milk Bank, the first of its kind in Ghana, is similar to a blood bank, revealing that the bank was launched in June 2025, and operations officially began in November 2025 after staff training.
Dr Ophelia Ganyaglo added that within six months of operation, the bank had successfully recruited eight donor mothers and served 15 babies.
Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Dr Ophelia Ganyaglo explained, “A human milk bank receives breast milk from healthy lactating mothers who have excess milk beyond what their babies need. The milk is screened, safely stored, pasteurised to eliminate harmful bacteria, and redistributed to vulnerable babies”.
“Eight donors may sound small, but these mothers have donated about 64 litres of breast milk, which has gone a long way to support babies in critical need,” she stated.
“Breast milk is liquid gold. It supports growth, protects babies against infections, and improves survival outcomes, especially for premature babies,” she said.
She further assured the public that strict safety measures were in place to ensure the quality of donated milk adding that all donor mothers undergo screening for infections such as HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and syphilis.
“All we are doing now is formalising the process and ensuring that it is done safely and scientifically,” she said.
According to donor mothers currently receive only appreciation tokens such as branded souvenirs and breast pumps, instead of cash incentives.
“We do not attach monetary value to breast milk donation because we do not want mothers neglecting their own babies for financial gain,” she added.
“We need more donors. There are many babies out there whose survival depends on access to safe breast milk,” she stressed.
Dr Ganyaglo further expressed hope that more health facilities across the country would establish human milk banks in the future.
“We dream of a future where every region in Ghana will have a human milk bank so that no vulnerable baby is denied the benefits of breast milk,” she said.
Some Ghanaians reacting to the news wrote, “Let’s encourage new mothers to donate, na 3nto waa da …… there are desperate situations where milk can save newborn lives”.
A netizen added, “Some would love to donate but and wish they could do it directly to the mothers because the hospital might end up selling it to the mothers of these infants in question”.
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— Serwaa Amihere, Esq (@Serwaa_Amihere) May 12, 2026