UK supports Ghana’s democratic governance with £4 million
The United Kingdom (UK) has announced a £4-million programme to strengthen democratic governance and promote free, fair, peaceful and credible elections in November this year.
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Under the five-year Deepening Democratic Governance Programme, personnel of the Electoral Commission (EC), the Ghana Police Service, the Judiciary and civil society organisations (CSOs) will be supported to undergo training to upscale their skills in handling security and judicial issues related to elections and other democratic governance matters.
Announcing the package in Accra yesterday, the visiting UK Minister for International Development, Mr Desmond Swayne, said strong democratic institutions were the best guarantee for good governance.
He lauded Ghana for achieving a reputation as a beacon of democracy in the sub-region following the holding of six free and fair elections.
He said the £4-million package was to strengthen the EC, the police, the Judiciary and CSOs for them to deal promptly with good governance issues and further enhance Ghana’s image as a beacon of democracy in the sub-region.
Mr Swayne expressed the hope that this year’s elections would, once again, be free, fair, convincing and proper.
“Whatever government Ghanaians choose, Ghana will continue to be a beacon of democracy, so that other countries will be envious of your achievements and try to emulate,” he said.
Other support areas
He said the programme would build the capacity of the identified state institutions to deal with problems as they arose.
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Again, he said, the programme would support the inclusion of more women, youth and persons with disability in the democratic system.
No new support
Mr Swayne said because Ghana had attained a lower middle-income status, the £4 million would mark the UK’s “last investment in democratic structures” in Ghana.
He said that was a measure of Ghana’s success in its democratisation efforts and indicated that in future Ghana would have to invest in its democratic structures from its own resources.
UK High Commissioner
The UK High Commissioner in Ghana, Mr Jon Benjamin, said the UK’s interest in and support for Ghana’s democratic process was because of the historic ties between the two countries.
He said the UK did not have a political party or candidate in Ghana’s elections and that it was ready to work with anybody who would win the elections.
Other speakers
The Chairman of the EC, Mrs Charlotte Osei, affirmed the commitment of the commission to ensure free, fair and credible elections in November.
She said the EC had started some reforms as a result of the recommendations by the Supreme Court, the political parties and CSOs.
The Inspector General of Police, Mr John Kudalor, said the police had formed an election task force to deal with election issues and ensure that members of all political parties conducted their activities without fear of intimidation or harassment.
He gave an assurance that the police would provide security for everybody, in line with their mandate as a state institution.
A Supreme Court judge, Mr Justice Jones Dotse, said the Judiciary had been undergoing training on the need to shorten the time frame for the settlement of electoral disputes.
He assured Ghanaians that the Judiciary “will live up to its mandate to maintain democracy”.