Political Economy • 4 Dec 2024 Ghana’s shady e-Gate Project This is a very quick note to explain my recent tweet about the biometric e-gate solution recently commissioned by Ghana’s Vice President (Veep). Ghana’s current electronic immigration management system is largely funded by the United States and supported by US contractors. However, it is not true that the system is “controlled” by... read more
Development Finance Governance • 24 Nov 2024 DBG, Ghana’s top development bank, goes for the jugular Ghana’s most prominent development finance institution (DFI), the aptly named Development Bank Ghana (DBG), has issued a flurry of statements and reports in the last few days (example) about a range of governance issues. The country’s major media houses, ever so supportive of big corporates, have dutifully reported each glowing... read more
Critical Analysis • 13 Nov 2024 There’s a plot to “loot” Ghana’s top development bank, say insiders A trove of evidence of shady dealings I recently wrote a piece on a fierce battle raging inside Ghana’s leading development finance institution (DFI), Development Bank Ghana (DBG), pitting various risk, audit, and compliance officers against senior management, as the board seemingly looks on helpless. Two independent directors have already... read more
Development Finance Governance • 12 Nov 2024 Ghanaian development bank accused of blowing World Bank & European cash “like water” There are fierce battles raging in the plush hallways of Ghana’s newly minted Development Bank Ghana (DBG). On one side is a plucky internal audit unit. On the other side are arrayed the well-heeled executives and board members supervising over the disbursement of tens of millions of dollars invested in... read more
Political Economy • 9 Nov 2024 Ghana’s oil production is collapsing not rising It was very puzzling to see a flurry of press reports all over claiming that Ghana is seeing an uptick in oil production for the first time in 5 years, and, even worse, to see this claim attributed to PIAC, Ghana’s multistakeholder watchdog in the oil and gas sector. Everyone... read more
African Development • 5 Nov 2024 Plantain chips are breaking hearts in Africa Going bananas about plantain records in global trade databases The annoying thing about analysing Africa’s international plantain trade is that the customs (HS) code for plantains – 080310 – is very often also used for bananas in many records. This is despite there being another code for bananas that excludes... read more
Macroeconomic Governance • 2 Nov 2024 Is the Bank of Ghana condoning insider dealing? The banking crisis that keeps giving Between 2017 and 2019, the government of Ghana closed down 9 commercial banks, 411 non-bank financial institutions, and 58 investment houses and fund managers (5 in April 2019 and 53 in November 2019). The policy intent was to avoid a disorderly collapse of these... read more
Technology Policy • 15 Oct 2024 The Bloody Adventures of Ghana’s 4G Pioneers If you are a certain age and live in Accra, Tema, Kasoa, Takoradi, and their environs, there was probably a time when you thought Surfline was like, man, going to bankrupt MTN & Vodafone for real! Nowadays, I hear folks on social media cursing and cussing, and shaking their fists... read more
Political Governance • 10 Oct 2024 Bogus mining data in Ghana poses danger Illegal gold mining anxiety sweeps Ghana & disrupts election campaign messaging Just weeks to the presidential elections in Ghana, middle-class concerns about illegal, irresponsible, and environmentally catastrophic gold mining have reached fever-pitch, completely derailing the campaign messaging themes of the leading political parties. There are protests, strikes, threats of strikes,... read more
Innovation • 7 Oct 2024 Africa’s financial salvation is on the blockchain Part I: Holy Ledger Pentecostal Tokenism Some say that the world’s largest modern church denomination is the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) in Nigeria. A megachurch with worship grounds that reputedly stretch for miles on end. It should come as no surprise that it is Nigeria’s largest real estate... read more
