However, the effectiveness and sustainability of business advocacy in Ghana has often been questioned.
The Business Sector Advocacy Challenge (BUSAC) Fund provided funding for Ghanaian businesses to broadly engage in policy making and implementation at the national and local levels.
BUSAC assisted hundreds of institutions to remove bottlenecks that had negative impacts on the private sector through advocacy.
Denmark is presently providing GH¢ 115 million to support efforts at private sector development, under the Support to Private Sector Development Phase Two (SPSD II), spanning January 2010 to December 2014.
The overall development objective of the programme is the creation of decent and sustainable jobs, in support of Ghana’s Private Sector Development Strategy.
However, the effectiveness and sustainability of business advocacy in Ghana has often been questioned – because public sector agencies do not respond adequately to most advocacy interventions.
Development Planner and Business Service Provider, Nyaaba-Aweeba Azongo, describes BUSAC as one of the best donor-funding arrangements.
He suggests support for private sector advocacy should be extended to the public sector to stimulate the necessary public-private sector partnerships.
“Now we are focusing on building the capacity of the private sector players to be able to dialogue with the public sector. But especially when it comes to the local level – at the district level – there should be at least a complimentary intervention to ensure that the public scene is also brought into the entire advocacy programme”, stated Mr. Azongo, who was instrumental in implementing one of BUSAC’s projects which culminated in the establishment of the Suame Magazine Industrial Development Organization (SMIDO).
Mr. Azongo said for business advocacy to be sustained in Ghana in the long term, “government might have to come out with an overarching programme that will serve as a barometer to check public-private partnership at the local level and if that is integrated into the local government system, I am sure that we can sustain advocacy programmes in the country, even with the exit of BUSAC funding projects”.
Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh/Luv Fm/Ghana
Read more here:
Extend business advocacy to public sector; expert suggests