INTRODUCTION

Ghana’ business environment is competitive, but faces challenges such as high debt levels, inflation, high interest rate, foreign exchange volatility, investments, high youth unemployment rate etc. Ghana has strong democratic credentials and matured democratic institutions.

Ghana’s investment laws protect investors from exploitation and nationalization.

Ghana has abundant raw materials including gold, cocoa, and oil. Ghana is a cocoa and gold economy is also the center for the distribution of goods and commodities .Ghana hosts the African Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA) secretariat in Africa.

The infrastructure sector is one of the most important priority area for the new political administration in Ghana. Infrastructure are basic amenities that serve a country. Its development can help drive a country’s economic growth by creating jobs, stimulating investments and providing access to basic services.
Ghana Infrastructure needs include roads, ports, aviation, bridges, pipelines, stadiums, schools, hospitals, social housing, irrigation, water and sanitation, etc.
Ghana being a developing country faces significant infrastructure deficit which hinders its development growth.
In 2011 the government of Ghana released a policy on PPP that aimed at private participation in infrastructure and services for better public services delivery.
This piece of write up helps foreign engineering & construction investor in Ghana in achieving goals in areas like education, health care, social housing, water and sanitation, sports and energy. It will also look at digital technology, Irrigation and transport infrastructure.

EDUCATION INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT

Education being a highly integral aspect of development: a private developer can partner with the government towards improving the sector.
A. Building new schools:  there are cities and towns that are highly populated but have inadequate basic schools to serve the habitats, a private investor can look at such areas, partner the ruling government and build more schools in towns and rural areas.
B.  Upgrade and renovation of schools:  there are number of schools that need renovation or upgrade like adding more classrooms or building computer labs or even libraries a foreign engineering & construction investor can tap into that area.
C. Campus development:  it is in the manifesto of almost, if not all   governments to build universities, so investors can build a whole new university campuses with housing, dining and recreational facilities.
D. Early childhood development centers. One area a foreign developer can look at is to build high grade preschools and daycare centers to meet the growing demand for early childhood education.

HEALTHCARE INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT:

There are existing Healthcare gaps in Ghana that a foreign engineering & construction   investor should be aware of especially in rural areas, with focus on building hospitals health care centers etc.
A. Investing in fertility, maternal and child care health centers is essential and can be key for a foreign engineering & construction investor to consider.
B. Specialized care:  the need to build specialized hospitals like cancer treatment or even eye care centers can make a lot of sense for an investor.
C. Government support: the fact that the government of Ghana is willing to give support and opportunities to the private investor is pivotal and must be taken advantage of.
D. National health insurance scheme (NHIS): The scheme has always been open for private participation since its inception in Ghana. There are sometimes delays in payment though better late than never.

WATER AND SANITATION INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT

Ghana has a serious water and sanitation problem with people engaging in open deification. A walk around some beaches and one can experience people just easing themselves with no iota of shame.
There are number of households without toilet facilities or either a lot of people are sharing just one space of a toilet facility. Same can be said about water facility, there are number of homes that simply lack flowing taps, so a private investor can bring up   initiatives towards solving these problems. This will bring government support and be beneficial to the country as whole.
Then again, especially in the cities sanitation is a huge problem. This is where a foreign engineering and construction investor should look at and partner with the government to provide solutions to such problems.
In 2014, to 2015 the government of Ghana through local assemblies partnered with non-governmental institutions to provide toilet facilities in various homes especially slum areas.
Bio fill toilet facilities were provided for homes at reduced cost.
Another good example is zoom lion Ghana Ltd partnering with government to provide sanitation solutions for the country.

SPORTS & RECREATION INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMEMT

Ghana has an infrastructure deficit in almost all areas that’s why PPP is essential.  Governments in and out try to improve on sports facilities either by renovating or building new ones.
Between 2006 and 2008 the Accra and Kumasi sports stadia were renovated whiles new ones were built in Takoradi and Cape Coast towards the African cup of nations which was held in Ghana.  2023 also saw the University of Ghana stadium being completed at a faster pace for the all African games which was held in Accra. These are opportunities that private investors can seek for rather than leaving everything to the government.

ENERGY INFRASTRUCURE SEGMENT:

In terms of energy, PPP can gear towards expanding electricity to areas where there are not. Also because of abundance of sunlight in Ghana solar energy must be vital in energy development.
Facilitating the construction of power plants transmission lines, solar farms, petroleum pipelines& tank farms, which could be a PPP drive in Ghana.

DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT

E- government platforms, broadband networks and digital payment systems are all driven by PPPs in Ghana.
Digital payment systems and mobile money platforms are developed through PPPs, example is mobile money interoperability which has made mobile money transaction quite easy, that was a partnership between telecommunication companies and the government of Ghana.
In 2018 a program was launched here in Ghana where drones were meant to distribute drugs in remote areas, that is telemedicine in the area of health care delivery   and could be a PPP project.
E – Tax system, this is about developing and managing online tax filing systems, example is private sector partnering with Ghana Revenue Authority, which is a PPP initiative.

IRRIGATION INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT

PPPsareusedto driveIrrigation developmentmostly in areas where government funding alone might not be enough for its purpose. The approach aims at increasing food security and economic growth in the country.
PPP in Irrigation because, private operators are better managers of Irrigation systems which potentially reduces water waste, yes, private partners have advanced expertise hence the ability to manage properly.
There’s also an advantage of a shared financial risk for investors when Irrigation projects require huge capital.

TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE SEGMENT

• Road: Ghana’s road infrastructure has seen a significant growth over the years. New roads and highways are being constructed, “government in government out” but there’s still a lot more to be done, reason why a PPP is critical in Ghana transport sector.
• Aviation:  The aviation sector of Ghana needs an infrastructure improvement as Ghana cannot boast of any international airline currently. There are few domestic airlines owned by private individuals and bodies but there can be improvement. PPP s should come on board for more.
• Railways: Arguably there are no railway systems in Ghana. Ghanaians have been promised a good railway infrastructure to the point of sky trains but hasn’t seen the light of day. In fact PPPs must take advantage of the deficit in this sector and develop it.
• Ports: Port infrastructure development include developing new ports, expanding existing ones and improving cargo services in Ghana. This can largely be achieved through PPP consortium. Ghana government is currently looking for PPP investors for its new Keta Port project in the Volta region.

Challenges facing PPP infrastructure development in Ghana:

1. Political interference
2. Poor project planning
3. Bureaucratic hurdles
4. Poor legal framework
5. Financing constraints

Possible solutions

1. Streamlining procurement process
2. Policy reforms
3. Capacity building
4. Public awareness campaign
5. International partnerships

CONCLUSION:

Ghana surely needs a face lift when it comes to development in infrastructure, the more reason PPPs are fundamental.
So, wherever your expertise is as a private developer, being it education, health care, sports, road, ports, pipelines & tank farms etc. it’s incumbent on you to be up to the task anytime you are called for the purpose of PPP by the new political administration.