Also known as: Afrobarometer Pan Africa profile · Afrobarometer Pan-Africa Profile · Afrobarometer surveys · Afrobarometer African Insights 2026
Afrobarometer — research organization conducting surveys on African public opinion across 38 countries on governance, trade, migration, and inequality.
… Afrobarometer’s 2025 work across thirty-eight African countries found that forty-five per cent of youth aged eighteen to twenty-five described themselves as unemployed and seeking work, while fifty-two per cent said they would prefer to start their own businesses. …
A woman in a rural community Rural women across Africa face a double disadvantage as the urban-rural divide compounds gender gaps in education, employment, asset ownership, and access to financial and digital resources, the latest Afrobarometer Pan-Africa Profile shows. …
… Dr Kennedy also cited concerns about the public perception of judicial corruption, referring to Afrobarometer reports, and said other significant matters could bring the Judiciary into disrepute if not properly addressed. …
… He cited a recent Afrobarometer survey indicating that 72 per cent of Ghanaian youth want to immigrate, with more than half citing the search for jobs as a major reason. …
… It further cited data from Afrobarometer showing that across 39 surveyed African countries, fewer than half of respondents trusted presidents, the police or the courts, while only 37 per cent expressed trust in Parliament. …
… He referenced findings from an Afrobarometer survey which, he said, showed the difficult position Parliament currently occupies in the eyes of citizens. …
… The programme includes a session on “The Accountability Deficit: Corruption, Transparency and Public Trust – How is the African Union measuring up?”, as well as a discussion on the state of democracy in Africa based on citizen perspectives from Afrobarometer research. …
… The Afrobarometer survey, also referenced in the report, found that only 16 per cent of Ghanaians rated the government’s performance in fighting corruption as “fairly well” or “very well” in 2024, down sharply from 60 per cent in 2017. …
… The report draws on evidence from the Corruption Perceptions Index, Afrobarometer surveys, Auditor-General’s reports, the Ibrahim Index of African Governance, and other sources to assess Ghana’s anti-corruption landscape. …
A Joy Online opinion piece argues that African societies repeatedly emphasize the continent's deficits and external dependencies, risking that young people internalize poverty and lack as identity rather than circumstance. The author contends that this narrative neglects to teach African youth what Africa can become, positioning solutions as arriving from elsewhere rather than being built locally.
A Joy Online opinion piece argues that African societies repeatedly emphasize the continent's deficits and external dependencies, risking that young people internalize poverty and lack as identity rather than circumstance. The author contends that this narrative neglects to teach African youth what Africa can become, positioning solutions as arriving from elsewhere rather than being built locally.
An Afrobarometer survey of 50,961 interviews across 38 African countries in 2024/2025 finds that rural women trail urban women by wider margins in education, paid employment, and ownership of productive, financial and digital assets including vehicles, bank accounts, mobile phones and computers.
Political activist Dr Arthur Kobina Kennedy has urged Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie to stop touring state-owned enterprises and redirect his efforts toward addressing challenges within Ghana's Judiciary, saying such tours and remarks about SOE performance fall outside the proper scope of the judicial leader's role.
The government has secured US$300 million from the World Bank under the STAR-J Project to expand secondary education and TVET infrastructure, improve training quality, and end the double-track system by 2027. With US$31 million in counterpart funding from Ghana, the total investment amounts to US$331 million.
The Chairperson of the African Union Advisory Board Against Corruption cautioned that Africa's elaborate anti-corruption and governance frameworks will have little impact unless member states move beyond adopting laws and institutions to enforcing them and imposing visible consequences for violations. He noted that a persistent gap between commitments and implementation continues to undermine public trust.
A CDD-Ghana fellow has warned that fresh allegations involving Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin could further erode public confidence in Parliament, noting the controversy reflects broader concerns about the institution's trustworthiness amid existing perceptions of corruption. The warning comes as Afenyo-Markin disputes allegations from GoldBod CEO Sammy Gyamfi, who accused him of being an "extortionist" and seeking to pressure GoldBod.
A CDD-Ghana fellow warned that fresh allegations involving political actors could further erode public confidence in Parliament, citing findings from an Afrobarometer survey showing low trust and high perceptions of corruption in the institution.
The Students & Young Professionals African Liberty Academy (SYPALA) 2026 opened at the University of Professional Studies, Accra, bringing together 100 young Africans for four days of intensive discussions on Africa's economic resilience, governance, innovation and leadership, themed "Africa's Ascent: Forging Resilient Economies & Inclusive Governance."
Ghana's public boards, corporations and statutory institutions recorded a 109.3 per cent surge in financial irregularities in 2024, climbing from GH¢8.8 billion to GH¢18.4 billion, according to the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition's State of Corruption Report, which attributes the spike to weak expenditure controls. Meanwhile, irregularities within Ministries, Departments and Agencies and District Assemblies declined, though certain categories of irregularities within MDAs—cash, debtor, loan, payroll, procurement and rent-related—surged sharply.
The Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition's 2025 State of Corruption Report documents progress by accountability institutions including 71 investigations and seven convictions by the Office of the Special Prosecutor, and GH¢10 million recovered by the Audit Service, while flagging persistent weaknesses in the country's anti-corruption efforts.
A majority of Africans support free movement of people across borders, but majorities prefer fewer or no job seekers and refugees admitted to their countries, according to Afrobarometer's 2026 African Insights report based on 50,961 interviews across 38 countries in 2024/2025.
NDC National Chairman Johnson Asiedu Nketia has called for fundamental reforms within political parties and the judiciary, arguing that political parties must function as permanent democratic institutions beyond electoral machines, and the judiciary must remain independent and provide accessible, impartial, timely and credible justice.
Johnson Asiedu Nketia argues that courts must be accessible, timely and credible to effectively protect democracy, citing Ghana's election petitions from 2012 and 2020 as examples of how political disputes move from streets to courtrooms.
Nearly half of Africans have contemplated leaving their country, with 25 per cent saying they have thought about it "a lot," according to the Afrobarometer African Insights 2026 report. Unemployment and poverty are cited as the leading drivers, with 50 per cent of prospective migrants citing job search and 29 per cent citing escape from poverty as principal reasons.
An Afrobarometer report across 38 African countries found that citizens reject pressure to align with any single global power, preferring strategic engagement with multiple international partners. China received the strongest positive ratings at 62%, with positive views of one major power not necessarily translating into negative views of others.
An Afrobarometer report covering 38 African countries found that 45% of respondents have thought about migrating, with 25% considering it seriously. Economic hardship and job search were cited as the primary drivers, and West African countries including Ghana recorded the highest emigration aspirations.
An Afrobarometer report across 38 African countries in 2024/2025 finds that only 13% of Africans have heard of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), yet support for free trade has surged to 62%, with 62% agreeing that easier cross-border trade creates economic opportunities compared to 34% who would limit trade to protect local producers.
An Afrobarometer survey of 38 African countries found that only 13 per cent of Africans have heard of the African Continental Free Trade Area, with awareness concentrated among highly educated and politically informed citizens. Despite the low awareness, 62 per cent of Africans believe their countries would benefit economically from freer trade with other nations, representing a significant increase from 51 per cent five years earlier.
An Afrobarometer survey of 50,961 interviews across 38 African countries in 2024/2025 shows that rural women face a double disadvantage compared to urban women and men, with wider gaps in education, employment, asset ownership, and access to financial and digital resources. The report notes that rural women report higher participation in voting and political party affiliation than urban women.
Ghana's government revoked Executive Instrument 144, which had excised approximately 361.5 acres from Achimota Forest Reserve, restoring the land to forest status. The author argues that while policy has secured the forest's protection, cultural and behavioural change among Ghanaians is essential to ensure its long-term survival.
Ghana's upcoming African Union presidency in 2027 represents an opportunity to reset the continental organisation after nearly a decade of drift from its founding mission to build a stronger collective African voice and shape the continent's development agenda, according to this analysis.
An Afrobarometer survey of 50,961 respondents across 38 countries in 2024–2025 finds that while public ratings on economic issues have improved slightly, large majorities say their governments perform "fairly badly" or "very badly" on controlling prices, reducing inequality, creating jobs, and improving living standards. Six in 10 Africans rate their country's economic condition as bad, and unemployment and rising cost of living remain citizens' top priorities.
Kwaku Antwi-Boasiako argued that Ghana's democracy faces threat from increasing citizen apathy fuelled by economic hardship, unemployment, and unmet expectations, rather than coups. He contended that democracy decays when citizens no longer believe it improves their lives and should be measured by tangible outcomes like jobs and healthcare, not just elections and institutions.
An Afrobarometer survey across 38 African countries in 2024/2025 finds that only half of Africans believe ordinary people can obtain justice through courts, with majorities saying people are treated unequally under the law and fewer than half believing they could afford legal assistance or court costs.
Cabinet has approved reforms to Ghana's decentralisation system, ending the appointment of metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCEs) and instead having district chief executives elected directly by the people on a non-partisan basis. A new local governance law is expected to be laid before Parliament by the end of 2026, with the current batch of MMDCEs appointed by President John Dramani Mahama likely to be the last under the existing constitutional arrangement.
An Afrobarometer survey of 50,961 people across 38 African countries in 2024/2025 finds majorities support rights to association, media freedom, and free speech, but experience of these freedoms is uneven and declining. Only 13 countries have majorities feeling "completely" free to say what they think, and perceived freedom of speech has declined over the past decade.
Manhyia South MP Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah claims the NDC government's commitment to passing the Anti-LGBTQ+ Bill is absent, suggesting earlier assurances were politically motivated rather than genuine, especially given that over 90 per cent of Ghanaians supported the measure.
An opinion piece argues that Ghana's institutions have not meaningfully improved in protecting women's safety since the 1990s serial killings of marginalized women; citing WHO data showing one in three women globally have experienced physical or sexual violence, and Ghana Statistical Service figures indicating 24.4% of women aged 15–49 have experienced intimate partner violence and 35.2% emotional violence.
An Afrobarometer survey across 38 African countries in 2024/2025 found that 72% of respondents support media holding government accountable and prefer press freedom over regulation, though perceived media freedom has declined by 4 percentage points since 2019/2021. In Ghana, 82% support the watchdog role.
CDD-Ghana and the Office of the Special Prosecutor held a regional dialogue in Kumasi where stakeholders called for strengthening the OSP to fight corruption more effectively. Participants, including civil society organisations and policymakers, reviewed an eight-year assessment report and identified concerns including the OSP's lack of constitutional entrenchment, funding constraints, and capacity gaps.