Ghana’s creative economy—spanning music, film, fashion, tourism and theatre—faces the risk of being reshaped each time a new government takes office. The argument is not that a new administration should avoid fresh ideas, but that successful programmes should be judged on results, not on the party that launched them.
Initiatives such as the Year of Return, Beyond the Return and the Black Star Experience have been praised for placing Ghana on the global map of African heritage and culture. Critics warn that each new government threatens to abandon or dilute these programmes simply because they were introduced by the previous administration.
“If an initiative worked, keep it. If it had weaknesses, fix them. If it no longer serves its purpose, replace it with something demonstrably better,” a commentator wrote. The call is for continuity: creative practitioners—from musicians and filmmakers to fashion designers and tourism operators—need stable policies that survive electoral shifts.
Musicians seek consistent opportunities, filmmakers require functioning institutions and markets, actors need regular productions, event organisers need a viable business environment, fashion designers need investment and access to international markets, and tourism operators rely on steady visitor flows. All of these stakeholders demand policies that do not change with the political wind.
“That means the people appointed to run creative institutions need to see themselves as serving the industry and the country, not just the government that put them there,” the piece added. The editorial argues that every new initiative deserves a fair chance to prove itself, but it also deserves honest scrutiny of its performance.
Ghana’s creative sector is economically, culturally and internationally significant, and the article concludes that the country should stop asking who started a programme and start asking whether it works. If it does, build on it; if it doesn’t, fix it.
