Data Protection Commission halts UG School of Public health ‘nutrition research’ over data breach

School of public health undertakes data-sensitive research

UG to inform international sponsors of breach of contract

Teachers, parents, public express concern over research method

The Data Protection Commission as a matter of urgency has asked the University of Ghana School of public health to

Read full article.halt a nutrition study they were undertaking.

The study by the team sought to describe the nutritional status, dietary intake, physical patterns, and food environment of about 1000 research subjects particularly adolescents from low to middle-class homes in 10 selected neighbourhoods in Ghana including Achimota, Nungua, and others.

These persons as part of the data collection process were expected to wear a fixed belt and an accelerometer with a GPS to track their physical activities and movement over the study period.

The above-mentioned procedure did not sit well with concerned parents, teachers, and the public due to the highly sensitive nature of the data processing of the research subjects.

In a statement announcing the development, the Data Protection Commission described the research as a breach of contract between the school and its international sponsor; International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), which had directed the institution to comply with their jurisdictional data protection legal requirement.

The university, in addition to halting the research work, has been asked to register with the Data Protection Commission of Ghana in accordance with section 31, notify their international sponsors of the breach, and conduct a Data Protection Impact Assessment to ascertain potential risks as well as train at least one staff in charge of clearing such projects to become a certified data protection supervisor.

See the full statement below