Supporting sustainable development in Ghana through a review of the political systems

The Business Roundtable is an annual forum organized by Ishmael Yamson & Associates. The theme of the 2022 event on 18th May 2022 is “Building a Transformative Economy – A Partnership between the State, the Youth and Business.” The Business Roundtable provides a forum for business executives, policymakers, millennials, and other key stakeholders to discuss a wide range of topics, issues and risks facing the economy and taking advantage of opportunities to ensure the creation of a more sustainable economy.

 A series of publications to encourage conversation ahead of the main event commenced in the month of May. The first post explored the current and emerging issues faced by businesses operating across the Ghanaian economy. This post, which is the second in the series will look at issues impacting on politics, democracy and national development.

 Overview of Ghana’s politics

In the words of Abraham Lincoln, democracy is a “government of the people, by the people and for the people.” This implies that the power to effect change lies in the hands of the people. The response to whether this is what pertains in the country, is a matter of which political party you belong to and more emphatically whether your party is in power. There was a time we took a trip to the Volta Region and out of curiosity interacted with the members of a community in an obscure part of the region. There was no development in the town but interestingly politicians came regularly for their votes every election season. Politicians in Ghana are good with talking but not acting on their word. What redeems them is the fact that citizens seem to have short memories.

There is a clear indication of the power that the people wield. If not, why would politicians travel to obscure places for votes if the voice of the citizens did not count? It might seem that there is limited understanding of the extent of power that citizens wield as electorates. In my childhood, I only heard and knew of the two major political parties. From time to time, others would come to genuinely attempt to be the change Ghana needs or as the rumour mongers would say, “they are there to help spoil the votes.” and disappear suddenly for varied reasons; Whatever the reason may be, the big question worth brooding on is whether the current structures Ghana has in place are helping to achieve its development agenda or if they are actually road blocks that favour the powerful elite and their interests in the country’s policymaking process. Before we briefly highlight some of the trends that are impacting politics, democracy and the country’s national development agenda, the relationship between these variables will be determined.

 Relationship between politics, democracy and national development agenda

1. Democracy does not necessarily mean an improvement in socio-economic development (Menocal, 2007).
2. There appears to be a strong correlation between development and democracy in developed countries, however in most countries in Africa the relationship is not completely distinct (Sikuka, 2017).
3. Development does not create democracies; however, democracies can thrive well in more developed economies (Przeworski, Alvarez, Cheibub, & Limongi, 2000)

It can be deduced that having a democratic state in Ghana does not mean that automatically there will be development, although democracy has been the foundation to development in some economies. It might be time for Ghana to review its existing structures coupled with studies from the politics of other thriving economies to create a customized system relevant to the country.

 Identified trends impacting on politics, democracy and the national development agenda

Current issues identified for discussion include the following: the lack of accountability systems, voting based on party affiliation, lack of sustainable planning and policy setting and implementation.

• Lack of adequate accountability systems might fuel corruption across all levels

Corruption is sadly the normal and going through the right channels feels like a punishment. Will there be a good chance for anyone qualified and with the right skills to make an impact regardless of their power and political connections?

How do we ensure that the development agenda is all encompassing and how do we make an example out of those abusing power and mismanaging resources to prevent future occurrence? It is good to have systems but the lack of an enforceable accountability system will result in resource leaks and continuous abuse of power and misuse of resources.

• Majority voting based on party affiliation instead of confidence in leaders’ ability to address the issues of the country

How do we ensure that as a country, accurate and unbiased information is disseminated across all classes; from the low to the high-income classes? What structures can be put in place or which independent bodies can be effectively utilized to educate people across board on the relevance of voting based on issues resolution or much better, an understanding of their power and how it can be used to redress developmental related issues. For lack of knowledge the people perish indeed.

When people have an awareness of issues and have access to reliable information, they would be in the best place to make a decision from an objective standpoint. Ghana might have systems in place but it might be time to change the approach to getting things done in the country.

• Focus on parties’ objectives to the detriment of the overall wellbeing of the country

What existing structures need modifications or what new structures are needed to ensure that policies geared towards the overall wellbeing of the citizens regardless of their party affiliations are achieved? How do we ensure that projects started by one party are not discontinued because a new party is in power?

It would be worth it to consider laws and systems that would prevent this form of biased development and hopefully encourage longer-term planning that spans periods beyond the party in power. The objective of every political campaign after all is the promise of building a better Ghana for all and not for certain select members.

• Disconnect between Government policies and academia

Policies will always have an impact on development either positively or negatively. Policies that are backed by solid research would be expected to yield better results compared to policies based on theories. What happens to the research work of graduate and postgraduate students? How do we ensure their research work do not only end up as a requirement for passing and shelved somewhere, but something that can be further explored to impact the country positively?

If laws existed that ensured that certain key policies are backed by research before implementation, it might possibly yield positive results in terms of future success. This might reduce the current waste in the system and ensure policies are not designed just to score political points but for the greater good of all.

It could be that these identified trends if tackled appropriately might enable the country derive the benefits of development from having a good democracy and political terrain. In your view, what are some trends impacting politics, democracy and development that were not highlighted in this post?

For further reading

Menocal, A. R. (2007, October 23-25). Analysing the Relationship Between Democracy and Development: Defining Basic Concepts and Assessing Key Linkages. Retrieved from GSDRC: https://gsdrc.org/document-library/analysing-the-relationship-between-democracy-and-development-defining-basic-concepts-and-assessing-key-linkages/

Przeworski, A., Alvarez, M. E., Cheibub, J. A., & Limongi, F. (2000, October). Cambridge. Retrieved from Democracy and Development: Political Institutions and Well-Being in the World, 1950–1990: https://www.cambridge.org/gh/academic/subjects/politics-international-relations/comparative-politics/democracy-and-development-political-institutions-and-well-being-world-19501990?format=PB&isbn=9780521793797

Sikuka, K. (2017, October 12). Is there a link between Democracy and Development in Africa? Retrieved from Accord: https://www.accord.org.za/conflict-trends/link-democracy-development-africa/