ISSER launches 2016 State of the Ghanaian Economy Report

The Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research, ISSER, University of Ghana, has launched the 26th edition of its flagship report; The State of the Ghanaian Economy in 2016 Report.

The report which was launched by General Secretary of the Trade Union Congress, Dr. Anthony Yaw Baah gave a detailed account of the country’s economy as it was in the year 2016.

Dr. Baah urged government to include in its budgetary allocations, funding for such research projects subsequently to encourage researchers and produce better results.

“We expect a bigger budget for research. We should not rely on foreign aid for research. Director mentioned that some Canadians are supporting this. Moving forward, I think we should commit part of our own budget to research and I can assure you we have enough brains in this country to help our own development so that we don’t over rely on foreign funding for this research”.

He recommended that the country’s prisons be a subject of focus in the next edition of the report.

“Our prisons do not show that we are a civilized country, if you enter any prison in this country, it will neutralize all the gains we have had over the past four years. We have about 15,000 Ghanaians in jails, you may think that it’s not a lot of people but what is happening in the prisons shows our level of civilization, that’s why I want to suggest that in the future researches you may want to consider what is happening in our prisons”.

Director of ISSER, Prof. Felix Ankomah Asante, giving a blow-by-blow overview of the country’s performance with regards to the economy, Prof. Ankomah among other things indicated that the economy within 2015 and 2016, experienced a decline in its GDP ratio as the 3.8% GDP in 2015 was reduced to 3.7% in 2016, a reflection of the downward trend the country has experienced since 2011. Additionally, he noted that the country’s “non-oil GDP growth since 2014 has outpaced the overall GDP growth, with the gap widening in 2016”.

He highlighted the significance of industrialization as a growth factor in Ghana’s economy. Both sectors he indicated will lead to substantial and evidential development in the country.

The launch of the 26th edition of the annual review of the state of the Ghanaian economy by the Institute of Statistical and Economic Research (ISSER) came off on October 11, 2017, in Accra. ISSER’s report has over the years played a huge role in providing empirical-based knowledge on the economy.