Policy research organisation organising the Students and Young Professionals African Liberty Academy 2026 and convening dialogue on economic policy and governance.
Senior Fellow at the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, Ato Coleman, has called for a shift in how leadership and public policy are approached in Africa, arguing that technical competence alone cannot deliver sustainable and inclusive development. …
… The four-day programme, convened by the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education in partnership with UPSA, brought together young people from across Africa to engage in discussions on governance, economic freedom, development and public policy. …
… The four-day programme, organised by the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education in partnership with the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), is aimed at exposing participants to ideas and debates on Africa’s political, economic and institutional development. …
… Speaking on Tuesday, August 25, at the Students and Young Professionals African Liberty Academy (SYPALA) 2026, organised by the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education in partnership with the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), Mr Vandyck said young people were increa …
… He was speaking on Tuesday, August 25, at the Students and Young Professionals African Liberty Academy (SYPALA) 2026, organised by the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education in partnership with the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA). …
… Speaking on Tuesday, August 25, at the Students and Young Professionals African Liberty Academy (SYPALA) 2026, organised by the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education in partnership with the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), Mr Vandyck said African CSOs needed to l …
… Mr Bentil was speaking on Tuesday, August 25, at the Students and Young Professionals African Liberty Academy (SYPALA) 2026, organised by the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education in partnership with the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA). …
The IMANI Centre for Policy and Education has urged the government to move Ghana away from its heavy dependence on natural resources and raw-material exports and pursue a more productive and diversified economic model. …
… The programme is being convened by the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education in partnership with UPSA, with participants drawn from across the continent. …
… infrastructure, making fresh investment necessary to rehabilitate the smelter and support Ghana’s ambition of developing an integrated aluminium industry. “It is bleeding, it is bleeding,” the minister said during a policy engagement with the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education …
Ato Coleman, Senior Fellow at IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, argues that effective African leadership requires personal values, emotional intelligence, stakeholder engagement and disciplined execution—not technical competence alone. He defined a leader as someone who lives by their deepest personal values and uses those to build a case for others to follow, citing Sierra Leone's Ebola response as an example of Ubuntu leadership based on collective responsibility.
Ato Coleman, Senior Fellow at IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, argues that effective African leadership requires personal values, emotional intelligence, stakeholder engagement and disciplined execution—not technical competence alone. He defined a leader as someone who lives by their deepest personal values and uses those to build a case for others to follow, citing Sierra Leone's Ebola response as an example of Ubuntu leadership based on collective responsibility.
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.
Day Two of the Students and Young Professionals African Liberty Academy 2026, organised by the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education in partnership with UPSA, brought together students, young professionals, academics, entrepreneurs and policy thinkers for discussions on governance, economic freedom, development and public policy. The sessions focused on civil society, sustainable funding, youth participation, limited government, the rule of law and strong institutions.
WACSI's Head of Capacity Development called on civil society organisations to give young people greater decision-making power, including board positions and programme design roles, noting that youth-led movements across Africa are reshaping civic action and challenging traditional organisational structures.
Lawyer and IMANI Africa Vice President Kofi Bentil argued that effective civilian law enforcement and the rule of law, rather than military intervention, are critical to maintaining order and discipline. He made the comments at the Students and Young Professionals African Liberty Academy (SYPALA) 2026, disagreeing with military leaders' calls for stronger military involvement in enforcing discipline across the continent.
The Head of Capacity Development at WACSI told African civil society organisations to reduce dependence on donor funding and explore alternative revenue sources including diaspora giving, social enterprise, digital fundraising, and government contracts.
At SYPALA 2026, Kofi Bentil, Vice President of IMANI Africa, argued that government authority derives from citizens and must be limited to the specific powers they grant, warning that unchecked concentration of power leads to abuse and oppression.
The IMANI Centre for Policy and Education has called on Ghana to move away from heavy dependence on natural resources and raw-material exports toward a more diversified economic model. Economist Professor Godfred Bokpin argued that economies relying extensively on natural resources struggle to achieve sustainable growth, and that no country has achieved sustainable development solely through such a model.
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 Lands and Natural Resources Minister says VALCO is operating unsustainably below capacity and the government should seek a strategic investor to rehabilitate the smelter and help develop an integrated aluminium industry.
The government has arrested 258 suspects and seized thousands of mining equipment pieces in its anti-galamsey campaign, but Minister Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah said the real challenge is ensuring prosecutions reach conclusion in court, not the arrests themselves. The ministry is working with the Attorney-General's Department to address difficulties in prosecuting illegal mining cases.
Ghana's Minister for Lands and Natural Resources Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah says approximately 8,900 hectares of forest reserves have been completely degraded through illegal mining and other destructive activities, with nine forest reserves among the worst affected. He warned that restoring the areas would require substantial resources and stressed the need for stronger enforcement to prevent further destruction.
The Lands and Natural Resources Minister says government operations have arrested 258 people and seized large quantities of mining equipment in forest reserves as of July 2026, but prosecution of the arrested suspects remains the main challenge. The Ministry is engaging the Attorney-General's Department to address difficulties in prosecuting illegal mining cases.
Ghana has lost approximately 8,900 hectares of forest reserves to illegal mining, with government operations resulting in 258 arrests and the seizure or immobilisation of 234 excavators, 2,728 pumping machines, and 1,724 changfan machines as of July 2026. The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources identified nine of Ghana's 288 forest reserves as severely affected and acknowledged that successful prosecution remains a major challenge in tackling the problem.
Franklin Cudjoe, Founding President and CEO of IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, has been appointed to Ghana's Joint National-United Nations Steering Committee, the country's highest strategic oversight body for guiding the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework covering 2027–2030.
JoyNews and the IMANI Centre for Policy and Education will host a National Dialogue on Plastic Waste Management on August 6, bringing together policymakers, industry leaders, environmental experts and civil society to discuss Ghana's proposed Extended Producer Responsibility framework, which aims to make manufacturers and importers accountable for the entire lifecycle of plastic products.
The government will submit the Damang Gold Mine lease agreement to parliament for ratification following its takeover by Engineers and Planners after Gold Fields' lease expired. The Lands and Natural Resources Minister said suspending operations pending ratification was not viable given the thousands of jobs and economic activities linked to the mine.