By all accounts, Ghana’s civic space has not always been one where openness meets accountability at the highest levels. Yet a recent civil society engagement with President John Dramani Mahama—recounted by Franklin Cudjoe—offered a rare departure: transparency, scrutiny, and a willingness, at least in tone, to confront uncomfortable truths.
Franklin Cudjoe, Founding President of the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, described the meeting as one of the most productive he has witnessed in a decade. What made it stand out wasn’t just the presence of civil society actors but the depth and diversity of participation—especially women from rural communities, who pressed the President on issues ranging from healthcare and education to illegal mining and harmful cultural practices such as witchcraft accusations that continue to marginalize women.
This was no ceremonial event. It was a forum where real-life challenges confronted political authority.
The defining moment came when President Mahama responded to an investigative report by The Fourth Estate highlighting procurement concerns under the government’s flagship “Big Push” infrastructure programme. The report flagged the heavy reliance on sole sourcing—a method legally permitted under certain conditions but often criticized for undermining transparency and value for money.
In a notable break from the usual defensiveness, the President acknowledged the concerns. He affirmed a principle both simple and frequently ignored: while sole sourcing may be legal, competitive tendering remains the gold standard for ensuring value for money.
“That acknowledgment matters,” Cudjoe notes. “It signals not just awareness, but a potential shift from justification to reform.”
Yet, the issue is neither new nor confined to a single administration. IMANI and the Africa Centre for Energy Policy examined roughly 1,000 public contracts over nine years prior to the current presidency. Their findings were stark: 95% failed to meet basic procurement standards.
The pattern points to a systemic problem—one that transcends political cycles and exposes deeper institutional weaknesses. In Ghana, procurement often appears driven less by rules and more by relationships.
The President’s call for an inquiry into the “Big Push” contracts, alongside a promise to prioritize competitive bidding going forward, is therefore significant. But it raises a critical question: can reform tackle the symptoms without addressing the incentives that sustain malpractice?
The insurance sector illustrates the challenge. Days before the civil society meeting, business leader Sir Sam Jonah warned of growing political and socio-economic interference in the industry—once occasional, now systemic and dangerous. Contracts, he said, are increasingly awarded based on political connections rather than merit.
IMANI’s formal petition to the President documented troubling trends across multiple insurance institutions:
- Contract renewals shifted without competitive tendering
- Reduced participation from non-state insurers in major placements
- Perception of predetermined procurement outcomes
- Complaints from industry players about market distortion and regulatory bias
Such patterns suggest that what begins as “policy encouragement” can evolve into informal directives, blurring the line between governance and interference.
The petition drew parallels to 2014, when similar concerns prompted the Ghana Insurers Association to appeal to the National Insurance Commission. Then-President Mahama intervened decisively, reaffirming principles of merit, competition, and value for money. That history is both cautionary and instructive: if the problem persists, so too can the resolve to fix it.
This moment is less about a single critique and more a reflection on governance itself. Transparency isn’t achieved through statements; it requires robust systems—and systems do not reform themselves.
The President’s willingness to acknowledge shortcomings and invite inquiry is a necessary first step—but far from sufficient. A comprehensive overhaul of public procurement, extending beyond infrastructure to sectors like insurance, is essential to restore market confidence and institutional integrity.
Such reform demands more than technical fixes. It requires political restraint—the courage to relinquish informal control over processes long manipulated behind the scenes.
Cudjoe ends on a note of cautious optimism: the President listens—and may act. But in a system where procurement has long been vulnerable to collusion, listening must translate into enforcement, and promises into precedent.
The real test lies ahead. Whether this engagement becomes a turning point or just another pause in a familiar cycle depends entirely on what happens next. For now, Ghana has witnessed something rare: a glimpse of accountability in motion. Whether it endures is a question only action can answer.