News

2021-02-04

Published by Justin

Land-title reform for a more prosperous Ghana

New research shows that building a comprehensive, digitized and accurate national-based system of land registration, can help Ghana unlock enormous economic opportunities. It would bring benefits such as increased property values, improved access to credit, higher investment certainty, and smoother...

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2021-02-01

Published by Justin

Digitization the best way forward for Ghana

Digitization can help streamline bureaucracy and cut down waiting time and uncertainty for ordinary citizens when applying for a passport, selling or buying property, or setting up a new business. It can help reduce the inefficiencies and, with less human involvement, diminish opportunities for...

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2021-02-01

Published by Justin

Better nutrition for better lives

The panel’s ranking was based on the research conducted by Richmond Aryeetey from the University of Ghana, Paul Kwame Nkegbe and Haruna Issahaku from the University for Development Studies, and Brad Wong from Copenhagen Consensus who analysed ways to reduce childhood malnutrition. They showed that...

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2021-02-01

Published by Justin

Prioritising malaria: one of the best ways to save lives

It turns out that malaria prevention strategies are some of the very most effective health interventions. For every cedi spent on the most effective policy, diagnostic testing, would create 133 cedis of societal good. How is this possible? Part of this has to do with the scope of the problem...

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2021-02-01

Published by Justin

The economic case for prioritising the fight against TB

Jamie Rudman and Rein Houben from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, National Tuberculosis Control Programme manager Yaw Adusi Poku, and Saleema Razvi and Brad Wong from Copenhagen Consensus studied these three important interventions to deal with the disease burden: active case...

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2021-01-28

Published by Justin

More prosperity, better health

The Ghana Essential Health Intervention Program (GEHIP) is not primarily about more medicine or medical machinery. It is about ensuring that Ghana’s rural health system works better by facilitating an effective organization. It is about developing health leadership, and generating information for...

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2021-01-05

Published by Justin

Prioritising our global development needs: The way to go!

Summing up 2020 the Ghana Priorities project has successfully researched some of the best interventions for the country by comparing social and economic costs and benefits. Our work to disseminate the results of the research to decision-makers will continue in 2021 encouraged by the Daily Graphic's...

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2020-12-01

Published by Justin

Maintain Ambulances to Save Lives in Rural Ghana

One of the high value-for-money propositions which is placed into the top-ten list for the Ghana Priorities project is to maintain the rural emergency transport system. Ghana’s emergency health services system is mainly informal in both urban and rural areas. The majority of patients who are...

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2020-11-12

Published by Justin

The smartest solutions for Ghana’s future development

Recently, an eminent panel of seven distinguished economists met in Accra to evaluate more than 1000 pages of research across all sectors of government. The panel includes Finance Minister Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta, Planning Minister Prof. George Gyan-Baffour, former Finance Minister Prof. Kwesi Botchwey...

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2020-09-30

Published by Justin

Boosting Ghana’s Industry for Sustained Growth

Ghana's economic growth has been rapid since the start of the new millennium, reaching 14% in 2011, but economic performance has been relatively lower since then, particularly from 2013-2016. Important factors for the slowing of development are the huge infrastructural deficit and the limited...

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2020-09-23

Published by Justin

Sensible budgets are not Ghana’s forte. But there is hope

The Econmoist published a great write-up on our Ghana Priorities project research. Ghana's National Development Planning Commission (ndpc) and the Copenhagen Consensus, an international think-tank, have teamed up to create a new initiative called the Ghana Priorities. It hopes to steer the...

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2020-09-16

Published by Justin

Modernised Administration for Increased Autonomy

Digitising public administration at the local level improves efficiency and productivity. Faster and simpler revenue collection, especially, boosts transparency and increases municipalities’ autonomy by enhancing their ability to generate more local income in a systematic manner. Ghana has a legal...

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2020-09-08

Published by Justin

Electricity for Health and Productivity

Expanding access to electricity can increase productivity and even improve health, which makes it a vital component of development in rural areas. However, electricity access in rural Ghana was only 67% in 2018, and the northern parts of the country are in a notably worse situation compared to...

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2020-08-26

Published by Justin

Family Planning for Health and Development

Family planning plays an important role in the reproductive health and rights of women. Access to contraception helps empower women and adolescents, increases investment in children, and contributes to poverty reduction and overall development. A reduction of 0.5 in the fertility rate has been...

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2020-08-25

Published by Justin

Improving Learning in Ghana: Right Approach Matters

Ghana has made great strides to improve its education system in the past decades, with near-universal primary school enrolment and equal access to schooling between boys and girls. However, as in many other developing countries, the quality of education is still a critical challenge. In a 2016...

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2020-08-07

Published by Justin

Eminent economists to prioritise best policies for Ghana’s future

The Ghana Priorities Eminent Panel Conference was opened in Accra yesterday, as reported by multiple news outlets such as Ghana News Agency , Starr FM , Daily Mail , and GhanaWeb . It will set out a data-driven approach to prioritisation of the best policies for the country’s future. Over the next...

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2020-08-05

Published by Justin

Bawumia to open conference which will determine Smartest Policies for Prosperous Future

The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia will open a multi-day conference in Accra on Thursday at which eminent economists from Ghana and abroad are going to prioritise the smartest solutions to the country's challenges. The conference is organised by the Ghana Priorities project, a collaboration...

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2020-08-04

Published by Justin

For Cleaner and Healthier Rural Communities

Clean and healthy communities require proper sanitation, but one in every three people in the world still lacks access to a dignified sanitation service. Ghana has also struggled to improve sanitation coverage, and the situation remains challenging, especially in rural communities where private...

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2020-07-30

Published by Justin

Transforming Ghana’s Agricultural Sector

Agriculture is a significant contributor to the Ghanaian economy and an important source of employment, with over 40% of all workers engaged in farming. With growth and development, the country is gradually shifting away from this sector towards industry and services, but agriculture is still key...

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2020-07-29

Published by Justin

Equal Access to Health Care

Ghanaians’ health issues have shifted over time, from infectious diseases and maternal and child health problems to ever more non-communicable diseases. The current co-existence of diseases like malaria and tuberculosis with hypertension, stroke, and diabetes presents a challenge for the country’s...

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2020-07-28

Published by Justin

Sanitation for a Cleaner and Healthier Future

Proper sanitation practices protect communities from diseases and maintain a clean and safe environment to promote the social, economic, and physical wellbeing of the population. In Ghana, liquid waste management has been largely neglected and remains an urgent issue with nationwide implications...

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2020-07-20

Published by Justin

Cost-Effective Strategies to Reduce Flooding

Over the past decades, the Accra Metropolitan Area has witnessed major development, but this growth has given rise to risks of its own. Rapid urbanization has caused an unplanned expansion of built-up areas like roads, parking lots and other structures with impervious surfaces, which has led to...

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2020-06-29

Published by Justin

Cost, Benefits of Fighting COVID-19

Across the world, countries have imposed social distancing regulations to avoid overwhelming the health care capacity during the corona pandemic — the so-called “flatten the curve.” Such a policy can be sensible. The first peer-reviewed cost-benefit analysis of the US shows just that. It looks at...

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2020-06-18

Published by Justin

Industrial Transformations for Growth and Development

Even with Ghana’s impressive economic growth in recent times, the country’s industries still lag behind the services sector in its contribution to both GDP and employment. Ghanaian manufacturers struggle to overcome the difficulties posed by infrastructure problems, informality, and the lack of...

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2020-06-09

Published by Justin

Land Title Reform for Increased Investment, Security and Development

Ghana’s economy has shown robust growth in the past two decades, with GDP per capita increasing by 88% in real terms during this period. Still, poverty remains a challenge, especially among the rural population. For an economy largely reliant on agriculture and mineral resource mining like Ghana’s...

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2020-05-29

Published by Justin

Skilled Youths for Improved Employment

A third of Ghana’s population is between the ages of 15 and 34, but the country struggles to offer employment for its youth. Job creation has not kept up the pace with the country’s strong GDP growth, and among young people unemployment has increased from 10% in 2008 to 14% in 2018, far exceeding...

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2020-05-14

Published by Justin

Improved Access to Free Senior High School

Achieving universal primary and secondary education is a central target of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Completion of primary and secondary education equips individuals with the needed skills and knowledge to establish businesses, seek employment, and save to secure their futures. Higher...

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2020-05-07

Published by Justin

Hypertension – Ghana’s Disease of the Future?

In Ghana, health care policy interventions and research budgets have traditionally been directed towards combatting communicable diseases like HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis. These are still a major public health concern, but as the country advances toward greater prosperity, the prevalence of...

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2020-04-30

Published by Justin

Investments in Mental Health for Far-Reaching Benefits

Mental health problems are a major contributor to the disease burden across the world and in Ghana. They have a significant impact on individuals through increased disability and mortality, but they also generate substantial costs for Ghana and elsewhere in the form of lost productivity. The costs...

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2020-04-28

Published by Justin

Better Health Through Improved Sanitation

Around 2.5 billion people in the world lack access to dignified sanitation services. In Ghana, coverage is abysmally low. Only 22% of the urban population have improved, non-shared facilities with shared toilets the most common service option in cities, accounting for over 60% of coverage. With...

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2020-04-27

Published by Justin

A Sustainable Future for Ghana’s Fishing Sector

Fishing makes a substantial contribution to Ghana’s economy and employment, sustaining the livelihoods of at least 3 million people, including half a million women. In West Africa, fish constitutes about one-third of animal protein consumed. However, the marine fish stock in Ghana is biologically...

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2020-04-15

Published by Justin

The Best Actions to Empower Girls and Reduce Poverty

Fifty-one percent. This is the alarming dropout rate of Ghanaian girls who do not complete junior high school. Many drop out to get married. Child marriage is a common practice that affects 4 out of every 10 girls in sub-Saharan Africa. In Ghana, 27% of girls are married before reaching the legal...

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2020-04-09

Published by Justin

The Smartest Ways to Fight Malaria

Healthy societies are productive societies, and Ghana is making great progress. In many areas, from improved nutrition and poverty reduction to disease prevention, the country is witnessing significant development. However, malaria remains a major public health concern. With one of every five...

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2020-03-31

Published by Justin

Prioritising Tuberculosis Treatment for Incredible Results

With news around the world focussing on the Corona crisis, it's easy to forget that one of the most common killers in Ghana and globally is a disease we already have a treatment for: tuberculosis. Approximately one-quarter of the world’s population has been infected, although the majority don’t...

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2020-03-25

Published by Justin

Cleaner Air for Every Household

Cooking over an open fire or with traditional stoves is widely practiced in Ghana, but these common methods carry serious risks. Emissions caused by the use of solid fuels such as wood and charcoal are one of the leading health concerns in many developing countries. Globally, over 1.6 million...

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2020-03-12

Published by Justin

Focused Actions to Reduce Poverty

Since 2000, Ghana’s development has been a real success story. The country has witnessed sustained economic growth, with real GDP per capita increasing by 3.5% per year on average and extreme poverty levels falling by almost 80% according to the Ghana Statistical Service. However, in recent years...

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2020-03-05

Published by Justin

The Smartest Ways to Save Lives

Infant and maternal mortality are important indicators of a nation’s wellbeing and the overall quality of its health system. Over the last three decades, Ghana has achieved much improved primary care for mothers and children, but mortality rates are still significantly higher than the targets of...

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2020-02-27

Published by Justin

Better Nutrition For Prosperous Future

Healthy mothers and children are the foundation of a thriving nation and the first 1,000 days of a child’s life are the most critical for their future health. Nutrition in the pre-natal stage and early childhood is fundamental to guarantee overall health and well-being. It brings multiple benefits...

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2019-10-17

Published by Justin

Stakeholders Roundtable Discussions Take Place in Accra

IT was wonderful to see great buy-in to the Copenhagen Consensus’ new policy prioritization project “Ghana Priorities” in Accra last week. Hundreds of sector experts have attended our week-long roundtable discussions on issues such as health, education, gender, environment, poverty, agriculture and...

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2019-10-17

Published by Justin

NDPC engages researchers on Ghana’s priority projects and cost benefits.

News Ghana has published an overview and recap of the sector expert events which took place in Accra last week. The National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) has held a 3-days round-table discussion with both International and local researchers to provide the necessary advice on how to...

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2019-10-17

Published by Justin

Ghana Priority Project, stakeholders begin roundtable discussions

The Daily Graphic has published an article overviewing the sector expert roundtables which took place in Accra last week. Briefing the Daily Graphic after the first round of discussions with representatives from the health sector, the President of CCC, Mr Bjorn Lomborg, said the whole idea was to...

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2019-10-17

Published by Justin

Copenhagen Center Pushes For ‘Smart’ Spending In Ghana

Ghana News has published an overview of the work to be done by the Ghana Priorities project. The Copenhagen Consensus Center is leading the national drive aimed at ensuring that Government agencies, ministries, and departments, in Ghana prioritize much better and spend their monies smartly. The...

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2019-10-17

Published by Justin

NDPC, Copenhagen Centre Demand Evidence-based Policies

Ghana News has published a recap of the sector-expert roundtables which took place in Accra last week. You can read the full article here . The National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) and the Copenhagen Consensus Centre (CCC), a United States non-profit think tank, have underscored the need...

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2019-08-03

Published by Justin

Ghana Priorities To Expand Research

Ghana Priorities will expand its research agenda at the request of the Ministry of Health to analyze the costs and benefits of interventions within the following three areas: (1) Public health emergency - (Early detection and treatment of diseases of public health importance) (2) Child and Newborn...

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2019-07-03

Published by Justin

Policy directors validate Ghana Priority Project

The Daily Graphic reports on validation workshop for the Ghana Priorities project. The Coordinator of Ghana Priorities, Dr Ralph E. Nordjo, explained that the essence of the GPP initiative was to offer a data-driven approach to the prioritisation of policy interventions. He stated that the...

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2019-04-29

Published by Justin

Let's push for smart policies

Bjorn Lomborg was recently interviewed by Kobby Asmah for Ghana’s newspaper of record The Daily Graphic As Ghana gets ready for the 2020 election, he also said it would be more prudent for the country to catalogue for implementing all the smart things needed and necessary for the national growth”...

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2018-12-18

Published by Justin

Doing the most good for every Cedi spent

Bjorn Lomborg discusses the potential benefits of the Ghana Priorities project in Graphic Online. In Ghana, we would work with stakeholders across every vital area – from education and healthcare to environment, agriculture and infrastructure – to find dozens of the most promising policies,...

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