A coalition of leading civil society organisations (CSOs) has engaged student leaders of Ho Technical University (HTU) in an open discussion on sustainable debt management and its role in securing Ghana’s economic future.
The Economic Governance Platform, created a relaxed setting for students to learn how national debt decisions affect jobs, public services, and long-term development.
The initiative forms part of the coalition’s Citizen Action for Sustainable Debt Management in Ghana project, aimed at making debt-related issues more accessible to the public.
Abdul Karim Mohammed, the Platform’s Coordinator, said debt conversations in Ghana often remain confined to elite circles, leaving citizens, especially youth, disconnected from decisions that shape their economic prospects.
He stressed that empowering young people with practical knowledge is crucial to reforming fiscal policy.
“Ghana has been trapped in a cycle of debt, IMF bailouts, temporary stability, and relapse into crisis. This is often driven by political expediency over fiscal discipline, especially during election years,” Mohammed explained.
He highlighted key challenges such as the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio of 105% well above the 75% threshold for lower-middle-income nations and the rushed approval of complex loan agreements in Parliament without adequate scrutiny.
“The result is that scarce public funds are diverted from essential development projects to debt servicing,” he said.
Member organisations of the Economic Governance Platform include the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition, CDD-Ghana, Ghana Integrity Initiative, Africa Centre for Energy Policy, IDEG, and Eduwatch.
Importantly, HTU student leaders said the engagement broadened their understanding of debt’s real-world impact on national development and called for more youth-focused forums to enable informed participation in governance.
