Ghana's Politics of International Economic Relations under the PNDC, 1982-1992

Abstract

Ghanaian governments since independence have had to align either with the East or the West depending on the government's ideological orientation. For Ghana, national development has been the main propelling factor to enter into the international system. The Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC), a military regime, succeeded in balancing external relations between the East and the West before the collapse of communism. The outcomes of external economic relations were mixed. Whereas relatioships, especially with the Bretton Woods institutions led to impressive macroeconomic indicators, the impacts on the wellbeing of majority of the people were negative. Domestic policy measures were tailored to satisfy foreign interests. In the process, the nation's debt burden escalated and the nation is yet to reap lasting and positive benefits from the regime's international economic relations.