Ghana

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH has been working in Ghana since 1975. The country office opened in the capital, Accra, in 1983.

Despite economic progress, Ghana has faced severe crises over the past ten to 15 years. As a result, about 25 per cent of the population still lives in poverty. Although the economy is slowly recovering from these challenges, around 80 per cent of the country’s workforce is employed in unregistered jobs and small businesses, where job security is limited and wag-es remain comparatively low. Ghana relies heavily on oil and gas for energy supplies and energy prices are very high, while the country has vast potential to generate energy from renewable sources. Moreover, the government collects taxes amounting to just 16 per cent of the country’s economic output, and Ghana ranks 80th out of 180 countries on the Trans-parency International Corruption Perception Index. This means that equitable and sustaina-ble financing, as well as a rule-compliant and citizen-oriented implementation of public budgets are impeded by corruption and insufficient capacity in relevant public institutions. At the same time, gender based discrimination is still evident in many areas of society.

GIZ works in Ghana on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and other national and international partners. It focuses on three core areas:

• Economy and employment
• Climate and environmental protection
• Peace and security

Projects assist Ghana’s government and private industry in promoting inclusive economic growth, regional trade, and creating enabling business environments across several value chains, such as agriculture, textiles, and the digital economy. The goal is to create decent jobs and increase incomes, especially for young people. To achieve this, the technical and vocational education and training system is being reformed to better meet private industry needs. Additionally, the cooperation supports Ghana in becoming a regional hub for phar-maceuticals. The cooperation also addresses legal migration and reintegration processes by advising both returning migrants and local communities.

Through energy and climate initiatives, GIZ supports Ghana in advancing renewable ener-gy, energy efficiency, and local climate action. The work extends to public institutions – in-cluding schools and hospitals – as well as businesses and industries. In addition, projects support Ghana to develop and promote needs-based training and professional development in the energy industry.

Aligned with Ghana's reform agenda, projects work to enhance the effectiveness, account-ability, and responsiveness of public institutions in Ghana, particularly financial oversight. They also promote the protection of human rights, rule of law, peace, and security and offer policy advice. Steps to promote inclusive governance enable citizen engagement and sup-port civil society, with a special focus on women, young people, and vulnerable groups.