Osahene Kojo Boakye Djan: Policy to rebuild his motherland ...

..in regional economic power (2)

Osahene Kojo Boakye Djan who intends to stand as the presidential candidate of the combined Nkrumaists family (party) at the 2008 Ghanaian presidential election has started to formulate his policies for government.

In an extensive interview with this writer in London, Osahene spoke on topics from Health, Education, Defence, Transport, Housing, Agriculture, Poverty eradication, Local government, Wealth creation and Remittances which he claimed to be his (emphasised ?his? and not the party that he intends to led) personal manifesto. Osahene corrected some misapprehensions about his leadership qualities. He used his time in England to hone his leadership skills as well as to study the emerging economies of Latin America, Asia and the Middle East.

Osahene Kojo Boakye Djan said he would soon publish two books before the formal launch of his presidential campaign in his native Ghana. The first book called Call to Duty ? with subtitle ?Enforced Restoration of the Constitution? is a blueprint for constitutional and political stability in Ghana. The second book ? Wealth for All ? with sub title ?In Life before Death? is a detailed policy for the future. The interview draws on some of the ideas in the book.

On Housing:

Osahene said low cost housing for the workers; market women and the forces would be the first priority for his administration. Osahene said by building affordable housing for the people Ghana can achieve her true potential as an economic powerhouse in the sub region.

Asked how he is going to fund this grand project, Osahene Kojo Boakye Djan stated that his administration would make available to house builders? part of the huge inflows from remittances from Ghanaians in Diaspora. Osahene cited countries such as Mexico, Turkey, India and the Philippines where large parts of Diaspora remittances are set aside for social protection projects such as housing..

According to International Labour Organisation, there was about 42 million migrant workers world wide in 1999. Ghana is no exception from this. In the early 1990s it was estimated to be over 2 million Ghanaians living outside the country, reaching to much larger numbers if dependants are also considered. Over 70% were the skilled labour that Ghana lost in the 1980s. Ghana lost most of her skilled labour during the ?Lost Decade? than the rest of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa that led to the total collapse of her economy. The only country that lost her nationals in the same proportion to Ghana was Iran during the Iran ? Iraq war.

Jeffrey (1999) reports that over 99% of those who left the motherland were in their prime (18 to 35 year groups). 80% of the Diaspora had university degree at migration and 70% were male.

A remittance from this group to their motherland is now the third largest inward investment, overtaking traditional exports of timber and cocoa. During the heady days of the PNDC rule remittances from Ghanaian Diaspora towards the motherland were not recorded in Ghana?s balance of payments. The flows at this period were going mainly to those looking after the others left behind, to pay for school fees and all the traditional uses of remittances.

Ghana?s fortune changed in the late 1980s, early 1990s when she embarked on the Fund/Bank Structural Adjustment programs. The man who presided over the boom years was Dr Kwesi Botchwey, one of Africa?s foremost economist and now a Harvard academic.

The remittances began to grow when Ghana ?successfully liberalised? her financial sector. Bretton Woods Institutions hailed Ghana as an ?African Success Story? and an ?Economic Miracle?.

Instantaneously Rawlings and Botchwey were able to link into the Ghanaian economy the millions of skilled labour that Ghana lost in the 1980s. The uses of remittances from this point began to go into businesses and investments than the traditional uses. It also became an important source of external financing for Ghana.

This writer (Jeffrey 1999) and others (Hawkins 1998) argue that some of the inflows should be set aside for social development. This writer wrote to the finance ministry for a break down of where the inflows go, but was met with stony silence. According to Bank of Ghana, as at December 2005 the Diaspora remitted US$4.5 billion to the homeland (excluding those that use informal mode of remittance). Thus the true figure is more than the figure quoted by the treasury.

Countries like Samoa, Jordan and El Salvador net workers remittance receipts exceeded 10% of GDP. In Ghana, remittances are more than Foreign Direct Investment.

In this regard, Osahene wants to deepen the link between the Diaspora and the motherland by making them equal partners in his development crusade especially in housing.

District Councils would be given greater role in the house building program. Osahene wants proper demarcation of every town, village and hamlet in the country with every street named and house numbered. He wants to link this program with the road building projects, thus making food, for example, accessible to the urban centres. Underpinning his house building agenda is homeownership. Osahene explained that mass home ownership was part of Dr Nkrumah?s self-sufficient program. New township that was planned for Tamale and Aflao during Dr Nkrumah?s administration is still on the table to be looked at again.

On Agriculture and Poverty Abolition:

Osahene wants Ghana to be self-sufficient in food production by the year 2015. In this regard, he wants to set up a committee comprising of District Assemblymen, Nananom, farmers and academics to look into how Ghana?s vast agricultural land can be put to good use. Examples from countries like Ireland, Israel, Malaysia and Most Western countries would be studied and/or visited by the committee.

Osahene wants to encourage partnership between commercial farmers and the research departments of universities to increase food production and livestock farming. In this regard, an agricultural university would be established at the Volta Region incorporating Ho Polytechnic and with specialist campuses throughout the country.

Osahene said university for agriculture was among the projects on the drawing board during Dr Nkrumah?s administration, and so was the University for Development Studies. He stated that with UDS sited at Northern-Upper regions, it is fair for University of Agriculture to be built at Ho in the Volta Region. Osahene said no region would be left out and argue that each region would be encouraged to exploit areas that it has comparative advantage. He will partner the Catholic University in the Brong Ahafo Region , strong in Business studies, to raise its profile to Enterprise Studies for the whole country.

He said the University of Agriculture will be encouraged to build satellite colleges in more than one region. The essence of this is to allow the research departments of the university to be closer to the farmers.

To defeat poverty completely, the youth, they would be encouraged to go into commercial crops and/or live stock farming. He said funds would be set aside to develop the potential of the youth to help the sustainable development agenda. Osahene said special industrial zones would be established in every district in the rural areas as pilot projects. Based on its success this would then be extended to every district in the land. Osahene explained that it is by creating more jobs this way that poverty could be defeated.

The principal role of the government would be to stimulate this growth by initially investing in infrastructure such as roads, railroad, housing and other public services. This would be through popular/private/public partnership up to a point where the private sector would be encouraged to lead our industrial resurgence efforts.

Osahene Kojo Boakye Djan is putting in place a very formidable team drawn from seasoned politicians, technocrats, and academics and experience service men. Osahene said those who are saying the Nkrumaists live in bygone era are in for a shock. He said the Nkrumaists group is a broad church and thus in government they would pursue policies that would encourage the individual to become more productive as well as being independent from state control. Osahene and his team are poised on making a change for their countrymen/women.