Ghana's Privatization Policy: Rationale, Problems and Prospects

Like many other developing countries, Ghana tried to use the creation of state-owned enterprises as instruments of development in the 1960s through the 1980s. Since the late 1980s she has embarked on a program to privatize the state-owned enterprises. Aiding economic development, capturing revenue, and accomplishing social goals justified the early attempts at socialization, while economic efficiencies and related synergies within the economy underlie the need for privatization. This study finds that valuation problems and employment related issues are among the major elements slowing down the privatization process, and calls for political commitment and operational transparency in the process to ensure the success of the privatization program.