The Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has drafted a model bill to regulate political party financing and to strengthen and consolidate the gains of the nation’s multi-party democracy.

The Director of Programmes and Operations at the CDD-Ghana, Frederick Adu-Gyamfi, said the bill had been submitted to the Attorney-General for study and onward submission to Parliament with government support.

“The bill is designed to address gaps in the political system and help tackle the growing influences of monetisation and vote-buying, undermining the integrity of the nation’s electoral systems,” he said.

Mr Adu-Gyamfi told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview on the sidelines of a stakeholder forum on the bill in Sunyani that the bill promotes transparency and accountability in the financing of political party activities and campaigns.

The CDD-Ghana, in collaboration with the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), with support from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), organised the forum to deepen public understanding and collect views and feedback to fine-tune the bill.

Key provisions in the bill include establishing an independent electoral financing and enforcement authority, introducing expenditure ceilings for political campaigns, and defining a clear campaign period for political activities.

Challenges

Mr Adu-Gyamfi said the bill was intended to address major challenges in the nation’s political financing system and called for public support for its passage into law.

The Bono Regional Director of the NCCE, Cynthia Anima Boadu, acknowledged the progress made under the Fourth Republic.

She, however, warned that “rising cost of political competition threatens democratic integrity.”

Ms Boadu said there was a need for a comprehensive legal framework to regulate political campaign activities and financing.

She expressed regret that political campaign activities had increasingly been characterised by excessive spending and limited transparency into funding sources.

Study

A 2018 study conducted by the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) in partnership with CDD-Ghana showed that the cost of contesting a parliamentary election in Ghana rose by 59 percent between 2012 and 2016, with candidates spending on average US$85,000.

Ms Boadu also referenced a 2020 follow-up study by CDD-Ghana, supported by Adam Smith International (ASI), which reported a significant increase in campaign expenditure to about GH¢4 million, including funds used to “nurture” constituencies.

“The study reveals further that a substantial portion of political campaign financing comes from opaque and potentially illicit sources, some allegedly linked to organised crime,” she stated.

Ms Boadu expressed concern about the weak enforcement of the 1992 Constitution and the Political Parties Act, 2000 (Act 574), which provided a framework for regulating political financing.

“The absence of defined spending limits, donation caps, and strict disclosure requirements allows unreported and illicit funds to influence political campaign activities in the country,” she observed.

She, therefore, called for comprehensive campaign finance reforms to protect the nation’s electoral integrity, curb corruption, and enhance transparency in democratic processes.