Fighting corruption will solve over 90% of Ghana’s problems – NDPC

Dr. Nii Moi Thompson is the Chairman of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC). He believes that fighting corruption will solve over 90% of Ghana’s development issues.

He spoke at the launch of the Ghana Statistical Service’s Governance Series Wave 1 Report in Accra. Dr. Thompson called corruption “the single largest threat to national development.” He highlighted its damaging effects on public institutions and resource allocation.

As a Senior Advisor to the President on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), he presented a three-tiered “corruption pyramid.” The base tier involves routine bribery, which erodes public trust.

“When citizens pay bribes for basic services, it poisons their confidence,” he said. The middle tier is bureaucratic corruption, seen in procurement fraud that diverts essential resources.

He gave an example: “A school desk inflated from GH₵50 to GH₵100 means fewer desks for students.” This issue also affects hospital beds and roads.

The top tier is political corruption, marked by opaque party financing and inflated contracts. “Monetized politics forces winners to recover campaign costs unethically,” Dr. Thompson stated, referencing past admissions by officials.

The report showed that 70% of Ghanaians felt excluded from decision-making. Additionally, 56% reported contact with public officials in 2024; 18.4% admitted to bribery.

Dr. Thompson urged deeper analysis of these findings. He questioned whether “gift-giving” was confused with bribery in the data.

He emphasized that inclusiveness alone isn’t enough: “If citizens think participation won’t lead to change, they become indifferent.” Addressing this disconnect is crucial.

Dr. Thompson challenged stakeholders to find solutions. He mentioned anti-corruption models from China and other nations using institutional reforms.

“No country develops without tackling this monster,” he said. “Ghana’s path must come from dialogues like today’s.”