Opinion Piece By John Ayernor Nanor (MPH)
Ghana does not suffer from a shortage of ideas. We suffer from a shortage of disciplined implementation.
For decades, successive governments have introduced ambitious and well-designed policies aimed at transforming agriculture, industrialization, education, and youth employment. Many of these initiatives were conceptually sound. Some were even visionary. Yet too often, their execution was fragmented, rushed, politicized, or poorly coordinated.
The result? Public disappointment and eroded trust.
Agricultural reforms were meant to boost food production and reduce imports. Industrial policies were designed to stimulate district-level manufacturing and create jobs. Youth employment initiatives sought to absorb graduates into productive sectors. On paper, these policies complemented one another. In practice, they operated in silos.
Imagine a properly coordinated system: farmers increase output; local factories process the produce; schools and public institutions procure locally; youth find employment along the entire value chain. That is how structural transformation occurs. That is how nations industrialize.
Instead, we have often pursued visibility over viability — announcing programs without building the institutional discipline to sustain them.
Equally troubling is the cycle of political replacement that follows every election. Boards are dissolved. Institutional heads are removed. Technical expertise is discarded in favor of political alignment. This perpetual reset weakens institutional memory and disrupts long-term planning.
If a public official is performing effectively and contributing to national development, party affiliation should not determine their tenure. Competence must matter more than political loyalty.
At the heart of our governance challenges lies youth unemployment. Thousands graduate each year after immense financial sacrifice, only to confront limited opportunities. This is not merely an economic issue; it is a social and national stability issue. Idle youth energy, when neglected, creates long-term risks for any country.
We also speak frequently about currency depreciation. But currency stability is fundamentally tied to production. A nation that imports most of what it consumes and exports largely raw materials will continue to face pressure on its currency. Sustainable strength lies in producing what we consume and adding value to what we export.
This conversation is not about one political party. It is not about defending the past or condemning the present. It is about raising the standard of governance.
Critiquing poor implementation under one administration does not excuse poor implementation under another. National development requires continuity, coordination, and accountability across political cycles.
Ghana’s problem is not a lack of vision. It is a lack of disciplined follow-through.
If we are serious about progress, three principles must guide us: protect key institutions from excessive political interference, design development frameworks that outlive election cycles, and measure performance transparently.
The Ghanaian youth are not partisan statistics. The struggling farmer does not farm in party colors. The unemployed graduate does not carry an ideological label.
We are all Ghanaians.
And we deserve governance that prioritizes results over rhetoric.