Former United Nations Governance Advisor, Prof Baffour Agyeman-Duah, has expressed frustration over the poor prioritisation of development in Ghana.

According to him, the country has struggled to achieve meaningful development due to the reliance on various political manifestos, rather than adhering to the agenda set by the National Development Planning Commission.

During a discussion on whether it is appropriate to replace government appointees following a change of government and how this impacts the nation’s development on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Monday, February 10, Prof Agyeman-Duah said, “I think the biggest challenge regarding appointments and replacements is that we do not have a national vision. We have party manifestos, but no vision is accepted by all parties, let alone a comprehensive development strategy.”

He went on to explain that the neglect of the National Development Planning Commission’s strategies by successive governments, in favour of their own political manifestos, has significantly hindered Ghana’s development.

"I know that in previous years, under the NDC government, my good friend Dr Nii Thompson, along with Prof Kwasi Botwe (of the National Development Planning Commission), produced what I consider to be a highly respectable document. We could have reviewed or refined it and accepted it as a national plan. However, if we continue without such a document, with each party ruling Ghana based on their own manifesto, we will always face disconnection in our development processes."

He emphasised, “For me, this is why our development process is going nowhere.” He urged that politics should be separated from the country’s development, stating that this is the only way to achieve rapid and sustainable progress.