An Assessment of the Challenges in the Implementation of Ghana’s Foreign Policy under the Fourth Republic (1993-2015)

Abstract

The end of the cold war changed the dynamics of the international system. Countries no longer have to swing the pendulum from East to West, but are required to adhere to the tenet of democracy in order to receive support from the West. This wave of change propelled the transition from military regime to democratic regime, with the adoption of the 1992 constitution by Jerry John Rawlings. The change also impacted on the formulation and implementation of Ghana’s foreign policy under the Fourth Republic. This study, therefore, was undertaken to assess the challenges in the implementation of Ghana’s foreign policy under the Fourth Republic from 1993 to 2015. The study was based on the hypothesis that the implementation of Ghana’s foreign policy is affected by domestic and external factors. Primary and secondary data were used. Primary data was gathered for the study through the conduct of a structured interview of various categories of individuals and institutions involved in the implementation of Ghana’s foreign policy. Purposeful sampling technique was used to select the population for the research. The target population for the interview included staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, other institutions and actors involved in the implementation of Ghana’s foreign policy. Secondary data was obtain through a review of journals and other publications. Data obtained were analyzed qualitatively. Findings show that the implementation of Ghana’s foreign policy is influenced by both internal and external factors. The internal and external factors are largely determined by the state of Ghana’s economic infrastructure. The study revealed that Ghana’s financial constraint has been a bane for the country to effectively implement its foreign policy agenda under the Fourth Republic. The study concludes that financial constraint is the overarching obstacle for effective implementation of foreign policy of Ghana under the Fourth Republic – for the economy of a country majorly influences how the implementation of its foreign policy is impacted by both internal and external factors.