A Professor of Financial Economics at the University of Ghana Business School, Professor Lord Mensah, has expressed concern over the ongoing economic debates between the New Patriotic Party and the ruling National Democratic Congress.
He emphasized that despite economic growth figures being positive, they do not necessarily lead to improved living conditions for the populace.
“The question is, what’s the link of these numbers to our welfare or standard of living? We have aggregated numbers like inflation, which normally directly impacts people’s income. But if you talk about GDP growth, one party says they left it at 3.5%, the other party says 4.2%. From where I sit, the question is, how does this GDP growth transcend into the welfare of the citizens? How does it build up into the people’s pockets? How does it build up into employment?”
Professor Lord Mensah Financial Economist University of Ghana Business School
According to him, a unit increase in GDP should ideally translate into better job opportunities and improved incomes. However, he noted that even in the past when Ghana’s economy recorded high growth rates above 6% or 7%, it did not necessarily lead to substantial job creation.
Professor Mensah pointed out that the structure of Ghana’s economic growth is a major issue.
“If you look at last year, the growth that Ghana recorded was mainly driven by industry, for which the quarrying and stone sector were the main drivers. It tells you that the growth we are witnessing is not at the doorstep of a typical Ghanaian.”
“We need to find a way strategically to look at how we can reorient the Ghanaian economy so that its growth can create jobs.”
Professor Lord Mensah Financial Economist University of Ghana Business School
While acknowledging the importance of economic dialogue, Professor Mensah questioned the ownership and implementation of such discussions, particularly when initiated by a political party.
“If I say dialogue, I’m expecting both parties to be involved. And especially when it’s being organized by one political party and the question is, who is going to own the outcome of the dialogue? Is it going to be the government, where at the end of the day, the document will sit at the presidency and any government that comes will follow suit? Or is it going to be owned by President John Mahama who initiated it, and when he is out of power, the entire document is [discarded]?”
Professor Lord Mensah Financial Economist University of Ghana Business School
On Data Inconsistencies and Political Misinformation
When asked to clarify which party’s economic figures represented the truth, Professor Mensah pointed out that Ghana’s data system is inherently inconsistent.
“When it comes to data in Ghana, there’s no truth anywhere. The Ghanaian economy is structured in such a way that data, which is information, is quite problematic. It depends on the source from where you are taking it. The IMF will give you one figure for growth. When you go to the Bank of Ghana, they will give you another figure. When you go to the Ghana Statistical Service, you will get another figure. Now, there are variations in this information.”
Professor Lord Mensah Financial Economist University of Ghana Business School
For him, the key issue is not the slight differences in numbers but whether economic growth impacts people’s lives.
“The most important thing is that we are growing positively. But then if we are growing positively, how does that positive growth transcend to the ordinary person? That’s my headache, not the numbers.”
Professor Lord Mensah Financial Economist University of Ghana Business School
Rebuttal to NPP’s Job Creation Claims
Prof. Mensah was also asked about the New Patriotic Party (NPP)’s claim that it had created 2.3 million jobs over the past eight years. He outrightly rejected the claim, arguing that if such several jobs had truly been created, the government would not have lost the election.
He explained that economic indicators that directly affect people’s lives—such as inflation and interest rates—were among the reasons Ghanaians voted for a change in leadership.
“Let me tell you, the good economic indicators that are supposed to reflect in the people’s lives—that’s not what we see. Instead, the bad [indicators] are those we feel at our doorstep. Something like inflation—when prices were going up, we saw it and everybody felt it on their disposable income. When interest rates were rising, it became difficult for people to borrow from banks.”
“If you’re telling me that you’ve created jobs and at the end of the day, the people are not seeing the jobs, then obviously, it will turn out not to be true.”
Professor Lord Mensah Financial Economist University of Ghana Business School
Prof. Lord Mensah’s analysis underscores a fundamental challenge in Ghana’s economic discourse: the over-reliance on macroeconomic figures without assessing their direct impact on the welfare of citizens.
He argued that rather than focusing on GDP growth rates, debt figures, or job creation statistics, the real concern should be whether these numbers reflect in the daily lives of Ghanaians.
As the political debate continues, he called for a reorientation of the Ghanaian economy to ensure that growth leads to job creation and improved standards of living. Without this, economic discussions will remain disconnected from the realities faced by ordinary citizens.
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