CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2009
| Author | Darby, Reka Biro |
|---|---|
| Title | Rethinking Development Aid: Is There an End to Foreign Aid to Ghana? |
| Summary | This thesis strives to identify the most fitting sustainable development pattern within a pool of focus choices the Ghanaian economy faces that is most likely to open a door to an aid-free, self-sufficient national economy. After a careful look at the historical roots of the Ghanaian aid-dependency, along with current social, economic, and political implications of the situations, one of the main finding of this research includes the realization that there is no realistic outlook for Ghana on moving to a completely aid-free economy anytime in the next decade. The conclusion of this research is that even though an immediate move to a completely aid-free economy without catastrophic backlashes is virtually impossible, the most feasible and realistically effective chance for Ghana to minimize its foreign aid dependency is to focus most main reforms on the agricultural sector. Within the agricultural sectors cocoa production has been identified as one of the most lucrative option. Re-channeling some of the existing aid resources, focusing on establishing a more FDI friendly environment, which allows a full exploration of the country’s most promising comparative advantage possibilities along with developing local human capital, and raising life standards in the rural areas, most affected by extreme poverty is what this thesis wounds up suggesting. Finally, this thesis suggests that further reform options be explored affecting cocoa export, re-evaluation of the current tax base, and related opportunities a sound agricultural sector with a flourishing “farming business” would open up the Ghanaian economy towards a growth path that guarantees a long run, organic integration into the global economy. |
| Supervisor | Valentina Dimitrova-Grajzl |
| Department | Public Policy MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2009/darbybiro_reka.pdf |
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