SOCIAL PARTNERS AND POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGIES IN GHANA-CAN THIS BE A DEVELOPMENT SUCCESS STORY?

Abstract

Ghana opted for the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative in 2000 and the implementation of GPRS I and II. Today, it is one of the best-performing economies in sub- Saharan Africa with striking progress on both growth and poverty. Research has also revealed that contrary to perceptions that waged jobs are not being created, they have in fact been expanding far faster than the labour force growth. In this work we examine social partners’ involvement in GPRS I and II, which could be credited with contributing to these employment outcomes. Our analysis indicate that, the experience of social partners’ participation in GPRS I and II has had some positive effects in enriching the broader policy environment with the extension of the participatory approach to other policy areas, raising the self-awareness of social partners in respect of their technical capacities and providing the opportunity for them to form partnerships to engage government. However, the story remains one of only limited success since the main employment challenges facing Ghana - translating its impressive economic performance into sustainable improvements in living standards by creating decent and productive employment, and remedying deficiencies in both the demand and the supply sides of the labour market is still eminent.