Low productivity levels are emerging as a critical constraint to Ghana’s economic transformation, prompting a renewed push to embed productivity-driven strategies at the centre of national planning.
Against this backdrop, the Minister for Labour, Jobs and Employment, Dr. Abdul-Rashid Hassan Pelpuo, has renewed the case for stronger productivity-led economic planning as the government moves to transform the Management Development and Productivity Institute (MDPI) into a National Productivity Authority for Ghana.
Speaking as reform efforts gather pace, Pelpuo said many countries have built “strong productivity institutions” to guide economic policy and growth, arguing that such bodies provide the “data and direction” needed to support national development.
The proposed transition would reposition MDPI from a largely promotional institution into a more data-driven authority focused on productivity measurement, benchmarking, and policy support. The reform is expected to replace Legislative Instrument 1077 of 1976 with a more contemporary legal framework aligned with current economic and institutional realities.
The new National Productivity Authority, Ghana (NPAG), will be mandated to generate productivity indicators across enterprise, sectoral, and national levels, while also supporting evidence-based planning and competitiveness reforms.
Pelpuo said the long-standing absence of “credible productivity data” continues to weaken economic coordination, particularly in wage negotiations between the state and organised labour. According to him, disagreements over compensation are often shaped by a disconnect between labour demands and the government’s fiscal position, largely because there is no robust productivity benchmark to inform the conversation.
He indicated that the proposed authority would help close that gap by producing the empirical data needed to better align wages, productivity, and macroeconomic planning.
The planned institution is also expected to regulate and certify productivity and management consultants, while offering advisory services to both public and private sector actors. The broader objective is to build a more structured national productivity ecosystem that can support efficiency, competitiveness, and long-term growth.
Director-General of MDPI, Elijah Yendaw, described the reform as a major institutional shift, saying it would move Ghana from “productivity promotion” toward more rigorous measurement and benchmarking.
He said the proposed authority would also strengthen Ghana’s ability to improve competitiveness, attract investment, and position itself more strategically within the regional market for productivity-related services.
Policymakers are prioritizing labour efficiency, industrial performance, and data-driven governance as central elements of the country’s economic transformation, underpinning the proposed reform.
