Following the December 7, 2024, general elections, in which the National Democratic Congress (NDC) won and formed the new government, recent economic data from Global InfoAnalytics has sparked fresh debates over the economic performance of past administrations.

The research, led by Mussa Dankwa, Executive Director of Global InfoAnalytics, provides a comparative analysis of GDP growth and poverty reduction trends under various Ghanaian presidents since 2004.

The findings indicate that NDC-led administrations have generally outperformed the NPP in terms of economic growth and poverty reduction, raising important questions about policy effectiveness, governance approaches, and the real impact of social intervention programs.

The report highlights that, despite the NPP’s claims of being the party of economic transformation, data shows that poverty levels were higher under its leadership.

The GDP growth rankings released by Global InfoAnalytics for Ghanaian presidents since 2004 are as follows:

2008 – President John Agyekum Kufuor (NPP)
2004 – President John Agyekum Kufuor (NPP)
2012 – President John Evans Atta Mills (NDC)
2016 – President John Dramani Mahama (NDC)
2020 – President Nana Akufo-Addo (NPP)
2024 – President Nana Akufo-Addo (NPP)

The data confirmed that President John Agyekum Kufuor recorded the strongest GDP growth in 2004 and 2008, marking the best economic expansion under an NPP government.

However, the late President John Evans Atta Mills (2012) and President John Mahama (2016) both ranked ahead of President Nana Akufo-Addo, whose administration recorded the slowest economic growth in both 2020 and 2024.

“The data points that President Akuffo Addo has performed least in terms of GDP growth. However, it must also be emphasized that it was during his tenure that we experienced the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian/Ukraine war”.
Mussa Dankwa, Executive Director of Global InfoAnalytics

Mussa Dankwa, Executive Director of Global InfoAnalytics

Poverty Reduction Under Different Administrations

Beyond GDP growth, Global InfoAnalytics also analyzed how various governments impacted poverty reduction, using the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)—a measure developed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

The rankings for poverty reduction impact under different presidents are as follows:

2016 – President John Dramani Mahama (NDC)
2012 – President John Evans Atta Mills (NDC)
2004 – President John Agyekum Kufuor (NPP)
2024 – President Nana Akufo-Addo (NPP)
2020 – President Nana Akufo-Addo (NPP)
2008 – President John Agyekum Kufuor (NPP)

The report emphasized that poverty was lowest in 2016 under President John Mahama, when only 13.3% of Ghanaians were classified as multidimensionally poor, the best result recorded by the UNDP since 2000.

On the contrary, poverty levels have been highest under NPP governments, particularly in 2008 and during the President Akufo-Addo-led administration from 2020 to 2024.

One of the key takeaways from the report is the paradox of the NPP’s economic policies—a party that has positioned itself as pro-business and pro-intervention has ironically governed over periods of increasing poverty.

The NPP’s flagship social intervention programs, such as the Free Senior High School (Free SHS) policy and the School Feeding Program, were expected to alleviate hardship.

However, the Global InfoAnalytics report questioned why these interventions have not translated into meaningful reductions in poverty levels, with Dankwa expressing curiosity about this contradiction,

“The party prides itself as the capitalist with more social intervention programmes than the NDC, which is a social democrat, so how do poverty levels increase during NPP tenure?
“I hope some academic researchers may see an opportunity to probe this further to find out what could be some of the issues that the party’s policies may be contributing to the higher poverty levels when it is actually delivering social interventions programmes.”
Mussa Dankwa, Executive Director of Global InfoAnalytics

With the NDC now back in power following its 2024 electoral victory, these findings will undoubtedly shape the new government’s policy direction.

The NDC’s social democratic ideology emphasizes broad government intervention in economic and social programs, a contrast to the NPP’s more market-driven approach.

The NDC administration, now led by President Mahama, will need to address the economic downturn inherited from the previous government, refocus poverty alleviation programs to make them more effective and ensure sustainable economic growth while keeping inflation and debt under control.

With the NDC’s historical track record of better poverty reduction outcomes, it is the expectation that the new government will implement policies that reverse the economic stagnation recorded under the previous NPP administration.

For the NPP, now in opposition, the report presents a harsh reality check as the party prepares for the next election cycle.

It will need to reassess its economic policies that failed to translate into significant GDP growth in 2020 and 2024 and why poverty levels increased despite its claims of high social intervention spending

The NPP will also need to determine whether its economic policies were too focused on short-term relief rather than structural transformation.