Ghana's Construction Industry and Global Competition

Abstract

Doing business in Ghana could not have come at a better time. In the name of globalization, the government of President Kufuor has liberalized trade so that foreign construction companies easily compete with Ghana's own construction firms for big-ticket contracts. A major consequence of the bidding policy, however, is that globalization has negatively affected the nation's indigenous construction contractors in competing with large, international, private corporations for public contracts in Ghana. The situation has rendered indigenous entrepreneurs not only virtually helpless but also continually lacking vital resources. This article examines the current predicament of Ghana's indigenous construction businesses in terms of their inability to effectively compete with foreign construction firms. The author proposes meaningful ways in which the government should formulate a much-needed framework for developing, nurturing, and sustaining their operational infrastructure with the view to preparing them to compete effectively with foreign businesses, particularly for lucrative public-construction contracts in Ghana.