Ghana in Focus: Economy Special - Why Ghana DOES NOT need investmentfrom Pakistan and Japan

In this feature article we take a critical analytical examination of Ghana's current development approach, specifically questioning whose agenda is driving economic decisions in the country. The article is cantered around two significant recent events: the Pakistan Rice Roadshow in Accra and President Mahama's visit to Japan to court investment in energy, agribusiness, and manufacturing.

The Pakistan Rice Roadshow, facilitated by Ghana's Ministry of Agriculture, ostensibly aimed to foster collaboration in rice production through technology transfer and knowledge sharing around premium rice varieties like basmati. However, this approach raises profound questions about sovereignty and self-determination in Ghana's development trajectory. Pakistan, producing over 9 million metric tons of rice annually, clearly has its own economic agenda in seeking new markets for its products, especially as Asian markets become increasingly saturated.

What's particularly troubling about this partnership is the historical context. Pakistan has a documented history of discrimination against its own African population, the Siddi people, who have lived in Pakistan for over 600 years yet face severe anti African racism and marginalization.

This raises legitimate concerns about whether such a country would genuinely pursue an equitable trading relationship with Ghana or simply view it as a market to exploit.

The core issue here is that Ghana has missed a golden opportunity to engage with African Americans who possess deep ancestral knowledge of rice cultivation. During the transatlantic slave trade, Africans from regions including present-day Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone were specifically targeted for enslavement due to their expertise in rice cultivation.

Their descendants, particularly those from the Gullah communities in south-eastern United States, continue to maintain this agricultural heritage and have developed sustainable rice cultivation methods that could be transformative for Ghana's rice sector.

African Americans collectively represent an economic powerhouse with a net worth of approximately $3 trillion - equivalent to the fifth richest country globally if they were an independent nation. This economic strength, combined with cultural and historical connections to Ghana, presents an ideal opportunity for meaningful partnership rather than depending on countries with questionable motivations toward African/Ghanaian development.

Similarly, President Mahama's recent visit to Japan to promote his "Big Push" initiative at the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) follows the same problematic pattern. Japan, like many Asian and Western nations, views Africa as a "final frontier" for market expansion as their domestic growth slows and population ages. By 2040, half of Japan's population will be over 65, creating urgent pressure to secure external markets and resources.

The fundamental problem with these foreign partnerships is that profits generated in Ghana ultimately flow back to investor countries, known as Capital Flight, enriching their economies and businesses rather than building sustainable wealth within Ghana. Instead of courting foreign investors, the Ghanaian government could support as well as African Americans, local indigenous Ghanaian entrepreneurs like Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, who has built a multi-sector empire including banking, media, real estate, and hospitality. Supporting Ghanaian entrepreneurs would create jobs, generate wealth that remains in the country, and provide tax revenue that can be reinvested in infrastructure development.

We emphasise that true development and furthermore emancipation, isn't primarily about foreign direct investment but about sovereignty, self-determination, and maintaining control over national resources. This requires policies that encourage local entrepreneurship through soft loans, interest-free financing, and subsidies, particularly in strategic sectors like agriculture.

By prioritizing partnerships with the African diaspora and supporting Ghanaian entrepreneurs, Ghana could chart a development path that prioritizes African interests rather than continuing a post-independence model that relies heavily on bilateral aid and foreign direct investment that is NOT in the long term national interest.

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