Centro de Estudos Internacionais do Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-IUL)
Abstract
Ghana, like many African countries has had its share of political instabilities in the
aftermath of independence, in the late 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. But since the return to
constitutional rule in 1992, Ghana has been noted as one of the stable countries within the subregion
and therefore a beacon of democracy for other African countries to emulate. This
Political stability according to Svanikier, is due to the quality if its elites i.e. the highly educated
lower and upper middle classes of the society, who seem to understand or have understood the
need to maintain the status quo. The recent growth of the Ghanaian economy since 2011 (the
highest 14% in 2011), made it one of the fastest growing economy in the sub-region. This growth
has, however, in the past two years attracted more foreign investors and also attracted the return
of highly qualified Ghanaians from the diaspora back to the country. The current economic
boom has benefited some social classes and created new social categories, among those are the
returned Ghanaians from the diaspora