Veteran journalist Kwesi Pratt has criticized Ghana’s infrastructure system for continuing to mirror a colonial blueprint designed for extraction and export rather than national integration and development.
In an interview monitored, Pratt observed that all railways in Ghana begin at areas of concentrated mineral wealth and terminate at ports, a pattern he describes as typical of colonial economic design that remains unchanged decades after independence.
The analysis comes as President John Dramani Mahama recently completed a state visit to China, with Pratt praising the decision as signaling a strategic shift in Ghana’s international partnerships away from traditional Western institutions.
Pratt sees China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) as offering Ghana an opportunity to rebuild national infrastructure with a new orientation that prioritizes domestic connectivity over facilitation of raw material exports. He contrasted China’s approach with Western partnerships, suggesting Beijing’s cooperation comes with fewer political conditions attached.
“In the West, aid and assistance are seen as foreign policy instruments. In China, they’re not foreign policy instruments,” Pratt noted, arguing this difference allows Ghana greater autonomy in pursuing its own infrastructure and economic priorities.
However, Pratt acknowledged significant challenges in Ghana’s relationship with China. Trade figures reveal a stark imbalance, with Ghana’s exports to China increasing by only 11 percent over recent years while Chinese exports to Ghana have surged by 45 percent.
Speaking on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana, Pratt emphasized that Ghana must act swiftly to benefit from China’s zero tariff offer to African countries, warning that the opportunity is not exclusive to Ghana and requires competitive positioning.
The zero percent tariff agreement is scheduled for finalization by October 28, 2025, which would make Ghana only the second African country to enter such an arrangement with China. President Mahama has indicated that Ghana aims to complete the necessary preparations by the end of October to take advantage of expanded access to Chinese markets.
To address the trade imbalance, Pratt suggested Ghana could leverage its mineral resources, particularly lithium for electric vehicle manufacturing, noting that traditional exports like cocoa face growing competition as China develops its own cocoa production capacity.
He also highlighted Ghana’s proposed petroleum hub in the Western Region, describing it as “the second biggest project in Africa” and suggesting Chinese involvement could help Ghana transition from raw material exporter to manufacturing hub.
Pratt cautioned that securing zero tariff access alone is insufficient, emphasizing that Ghana must match international standards in production capacity, infrastructure orientation, and manufacturing quality to truly benefit from the agreement.
China has already granted Ghana 400 million RMB in development support this year, including 200 million RMB allocated for a new modern market in Aflao in the Volta Region, with another 200 million RMB designated for projects selected by the Mahama administration.
Ghana and China share six decades of diplomatic relations, with bilateral trade reaching $11.8 billion in 2024 and Chinese investments totaling approximately $3.9 billion across more than 400 projects.
Pratt’s critique of Ghana’s colonial infrastructure legacy reflects broader debates about whether Chinese partnerships represent a genuine alternative development model or simply perpetuate dependency in new forms. His argument that Ghana needs infrastructure serving national transformation rather than external extraction resonates with calls for more strategic industrialization.
The veteran journalist’s comments also underscore tensions between embracing Chinese investment opportunities and ensuring Ghana captures real economic value rather than remaining locked in patterns of exporting raw materials while importing finished goods.
As Ghana navigates this strategic pivot toward deeper Chinese engagement, Pratt’s analysis raises critical questions about whether new partnerships will fundamentally reshape the country’s economic orientation or merely update the mechanisms through which wealth continues flowing outward.
