Ministerial nominations announced in Ghana
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo submitted his list of ministerial nominees to parliament last week – to be vetted by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Appointments in the coming weeks.
The public communique names 46 ministers including 16 regional ministers, pledges to reduce the total number of ministers from 126 to no more than 85 individuals and reshuffles a number of key posts. Among them: Attorney General and Minister of Justice Gloria Akuffo replaced, Senior Minister Yaw Osafo Maafo stepping down with no replacement, and Peter Amewu moving from Energy to Railway Development.
A slimmer government will be welcome in most circles. It’s an important message for domestic and international stakeholders alike. Beyond this however, it is not yet possible to see a clear response to Ghana’s principal challenges.
Significance – Party fidelity
To quote Ghana’s first president Kwame Nkrumah, “whatever the programme… success [will] depend on the organisation adopted”. Personnel is a core feature of organisation, making the past week’s decisions particularly noteworthy. All the more so because of Ghana’s complex strategic landscape: (a) COVID-19, (b) acute fiscal constraints, (c) oil and gas sector quagmire, and (d) governance failings. All in the context of a novel slim majority or hung parliament.
However, the major innovation in the plans for the cabinet thus far is an increase in discipline around messaging. First, the reduced number of ministers chimes well with the needed signals on public financial management. Second, there is the shock ouster of the Attorney General and president’s cousin, Gloria Akuffo, after her opposition to the widely pilloried Agyapa gold deal. In Godfred Odame, her former deputy, she has been replaced by a proven loyalist. Someone who has led in various cases against the election result brought by the NDC. Otherwise, the impact of the proposed cabinet on government business is mixed:
Continuity: Of the 30 substantive ministers, 19 are in the same ministry (16 in exactly the same position, and four promoted), seven have been shuffled around, and four are entirely new to the cabinet. Unsurprisingly, Finance Minister Ken-Ofori Atta remains in place.
Party and gender imbalance: None of the ministers are presently associated with the NDC. And of the 46 substantive and regional ministers, only eight are women.
Curious: Matthew Opoku Prempeh aka Napo, the proposed new energy minister, was previously Minister of Education Ministry where he saw the government’s signature policy – Free SHS – (more or less) safely into harbour. He is a medical doctor by training and has a reputation for being brusque. His predecessor, Peter Amewu, moves from Energy to Railway Development. NB the NDC is challenging his Hohoe consistuency win in court.
Outlook – Plus ca change
Assuming the Supreme Court upholds President Akufo-Addo’s electoral victory, he will be making policy in the context of a slim majority or a hung parliament. Recognising this, in his state of the nation address, the president suggested the NPP and the NDC would be obliged to cooperate to a hitherto unseen extent. Thus far at least, it does not appear that this will take place in government itself. Instead, there will be a slimmer and more disciplined machine at work. Further, the dismissal of Gloria Akufo and ongoing silence about the Office of the Special Prosecutor underline concerns about probity and transparency in government business.
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