2009 Assessment

This peer-reviewed country report includes:

Integrity Indicators Scorecard: Scores, scoring criteria, commentary, references, and peer review perspectives for more than 300 Integrity Indicators.

Reporter's Notebook: An on-the-ground look at corruption and integrity from a leading local journalist.

Corruption Timeline: Ten years of political context to today's corruption and integrity issues.

The lack of effective conflicts of interest regulations covering government officials opens the door to potential abuses of power in Ghana. For example, the Ghanaian president is immune from prosecution, there is no internal disciplinary agency within the judicial branch, and new regulations governing gifts and hospitality to public officials are merely "guidelines" lacking an enforcement mechanism. While some government officials are required to file asset disclosures, there is little follow-through in the auditing or review of those disclosures. The Attorney General has suggested that the public be allowed access to officials' asset disclosures, but the Ghanaian Parliament remains reluctant to grant that access. Auditing requirements exist for political campaign expenditures, but without an effective election monitoring agency or limits on donations, abuses like the recent 1 billion cedi campaign contribution will continue to occur in the future. Good news can be found in the creation of a new budget research committee to enhance the ability of the legislature to contribute to the budget formulation debate. The ombudsman's office also shows high levels of effectiveness despite weak whistle-blower protections and the lack of a freedom of information regime.