Political Leadership and Policy Decisions in Africa: A Critical Reflection on Policies in Education and Employment in Ghana.

Abstract

Since colonial times, governments in Ghana have inherited political power with different development plans, owned by the government and amended by the incoming one when its predecessor leaves power. Article 35(7) of the Directive Principle of State Policy in Ghana states that “[A]s far as practicable, a government shall continue and execute projects and programmes commenced by the previous Governments.” This provision is supported by both the National Development Planning Commission Act and the National Development Planning Act to strengthen the role of the National Development Planning Commission which oversees the broader implementation of development strategies in the country. The analysis in this paper is influenced by interviews conducted with officials of the Ministry of Education in Ghana, the Ghana Education Service, selected heads and teachers of sampled secondary schools, as well as parents. A total of twenty (20) respondents were purposively sampled and interviewed. The analysis of the primary data was supported by other secondary sources including peer-reviewed journal articles, books and reports of educational development in Ghana. The results indicate the utter disregard for the provisions in both educational and employment policies and strategies in the country and its associated consequence on the purse of the public and general development of the state. The paper concludes that the apparent lack of consistency, over-politicization and the piecemeal attitude with which Ghanaian political leaders implement important national development policies may be mitigated by the adoption of development strategies that are national in character rather than government-specific and these strategies should be binding on all successive governments and geared towards an accelerated growth at all levels in the country