Democracy Capture in Africa (Benin, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria)
Democracy Capture refers to the way in which interconnected processes of clientelism, neo-patrimonialism, the personalization of politics and state capture impact on the democratic process – and highlights how the image of democracy is used to legitimate this process. On this understanding, a country can be said to have experienced Democracy Capture when: The political […]
Can a central bank make a loss?
The Bank of Ghana made a loss of GH¢60.81 billion in 2022. It recorded a profit of GH¢1.23 billion in the 2021. Some people have wondered whether the central bank was a profit-seeking business like a commercial bank. Others have wondered how the central bank, with the power to print money, can make a loss. The power to print […]
Regional and Student Chapters of Citizens’ Coalition Launched for Improved Civic Engagement
In June and July 2023, the Citizens’ Coalition led a series of regional and student forums where regional and student chapters of the Coalition were launched in the Western, Ashanti, Volta, and Upper West regions with a call for participants to be citizens, and not spectators, in an effort to foster a culture of accountable […]
Parliament’s Review Of Its Standing Orders
A report of the Standing Orders Committee on the review of the standing orders of parliament was finalized on June 23, 2023. It covers a total of forty-one subject areas and proposes major changes to the way parliament plans to conduct business going forward. The proposed changes are bold and impressive. If adopted and implemented […]
The IMF Bailout And Ghana COCOBOD
In May, the International Monetary Fund made public the full report on Ghana’s request for a bailout. I wrote back then, highlighting aspects of the report and the challenges ahead for the government. I revisit the concerns raised about the operations of COCOBOD and the demand for reforms. This is what the report said, “Ghana’s […]
Why does the IMF include the debt of state-owned enterprises in Ghana’s public debt?
If we lived in a world in which our SOEs were well managed and independent, they had no cashflow problems, were profitable, did not depend on government bailouts, and easily serviced their debts, they would pose no fiscal risks to the government’s ability to manage non-SOEs public debt. There may be no need to include […]
Beyond the Ballot: Exploring Trust, Freeness and Fairness in Ghana’s Electoral Process for the 2024 Elections
Several norms are a regular feature in democracies. Regular competitive election is one of them. Electoral processes, however, are not without their challenges and controversies. If it is not the outcome we are displeased with, it is the process we had concerns about. In a little over a year, Ghanaians will head to the polls […]
Vote buying: Use undercover investigations to expose politicians and voters – Dr. Asante
Director of Programmes and Policy Engagement at the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Dr. Kojo Pumpuni Asante has suggested that state security and law enforcement agencies use undercover tactics to be able to expose the sanction politicians who engage in vote-buying. https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Vote-buying-Use-undercover-investigations-to-expose-politicians-and-voters-Dr-Asante-1796507
CODEO Deploys 15 Observers for the Assin North Constituency By-election
The Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO) as part of its mandate to mobilize citizens of Ghana to actively participate in the electoral process and to complement the efforts of Ghana’s Electoral Commission in ensuring transparent, free, fair and peaceful elections will be observing the Assin North constituency by-elections.
The Challenges to Ghana’s Peace with Democracy
Dr. Osae-Kwapong asserts emphatically that Ghanaians have made peace with democracy, as evidenced by their strong support for democracy and positive attitudes toward democratic norms, as measured by Afrobarometer surveys. A detailed examination of the data reveals, however, that Ghana’s peace with democracy faces some challenges. Two of these challenges are highlighted in this blog […]
