Michael Dzivenu – Institute for Fiscal Studies Ghana

May 24, 2019

Ghana’s Attempts at Industrialization: How Can the Country Achieve the Success It Yearns For? [Occasional Paper No. 19]

[Occasional Paper No. 19] Ghana’s Attempts at Industrialization: How Can the Country Achieve the Success It Yearns For? Since independence, Ghana has sought to extensively develop the manufacturing sector of the economy with the goal of becoming an industrialized nation, enjoying rapid and sustained economic growth and development. Yet, data reveal that the manufacturing sector has performed very poorly, leading to the failure of the country’s industrialization attempts despite strong policy attention paid to the sector. Economic fundamentals such as high fiscal deficits, macroeconomic instability, shortage of foreign currency, inadequate raw materials to feed the manufacturing industries, etc. have commonly […]

July 2, 2019

IFS National Pension Dialogue

IFS National Pension Dialogue In 2006, Ghana began a review of its pension system to identify ways of ensuring better income security for Ghanaian pensioners. The review culminated in the enactment of a new National Pension Act (Act 766) in 2008. The law establishes a new contributory three-tier pension scheme and a regulatory oversight body, the National Pension Regulatory Authority (NPRA), to oversee administration of the composite pension scheme. Under the law, which remains in force today, 13.5% of an employee’s basic salary is paid to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) comprising 13% contributed by the employer […]

July 23, 2019

Press Conference: IFS’ Review of the Economy ahead of the Mid-Year Budget Presentation

The Minister of Finance, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, is expected to present a Mid-Year Review Statement on the 2019 Budget to Parliament in the next few days. To provide context for public discussion of this important policy statement, the IFS has undertaken a thorough review of the economy. The review examines developments in economic growth, macroeconomic stability, fiscal policy, and the public debt since 2017. It further analyses the characteristics of the economic growth that has been experienced in the period and its implications for employment and incomes. The review further examines macroeconomic stability, fiscal policy performance and public debt and […]

August 6, 2019

IFS’ Assessment of 2019 Mid-Year Fiscal Policy Review

On Monday July 29, the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, presented the mid-year review of the 2019 budget statement and fiscal policy to Parliament. Notable fiscal policy changes that were announced include energy and communication tax hikes and a request to spend more money (supplementary expenditure estimates) relative to the initial 2019 budget appropriation. Prior to the mid-year budget, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) had reviewed the economy’s performance and provided recommendations to the government to address challenges identified. In what follows, we assess the notable developments in the mid-year review and make further recommendations to safeguard fiscal stability, which […]

September 24, 2019

IFS attends 4th African Network of Parliamentary Budget Officers Conference

A team from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS Ghana) has attended the 4th African Network of Parliamentary Budget Officers (AN-PBO) C0nference, dubbed The Role of African Parliaments in Fiscal Oversight: Contributing to the African Union 2063 Development Agenda, which was held from 9th to 12th September 2019, at the Parliament of Ghana. The team presented on the topic Understanding Economic and Fiscal Forecast: Key Elements to Consider, led by Mr. Leslie Mensah, an Economist and Research Fellow at the Institute. The presentation sought to explore tools and approaches that may be used by Parliamentary Budget Officers to verify economic […]

September 25, 2019

Assessing management of the Ghana Petroleum Fund and Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) Revenue [Occasional Paper No. 21]

Since Ghana became a producer and exporter of oil in the late 2010, there has been strong public interest in the management of petroleum revenues accruing to the government, as it is believed that to make the revenues transformative demands their transparent and effective management. This report assess transparency and efﬁciency in the management of these revenues and offers recommendations to address observed shortcomings. Read the full report here.