The European Union (EU) has called on Ghanaians to actively exercise their democratic rights and hold elected leaders to account, framing sustained civic engagement as one of the most important safeguards for the country’s economic stability and long-term development.
EU Ambassador to Ghana Rune Skinnebach delivered the message at a career service programme at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), acknowledging Ghana’s recent progress in economic management, governance and democratic practice while warning that those gains remain vulnerable without continuous public oversight.
He described Ghana as a “peaceful and stable island in very unruly waters” within the West African sub-region, cautioning that instability across the Sahel and in neighbouring states continues to pose security risks capable of affecting national development if the wider regional environment deteriorates further.
Skinnebach noted that Ghana’s macroeconomic outlook remains relatively positive, supported by favourable commodity prices and ongoing structural reforms. He stressed, however, that fiscal discipline must be preserved even through politically sensitive periods such as elections, warning that any slippage in economic management could erode investor confidence and reverse hard-won stability.
The Ambassador argued that citizens carry a direct stake in protecting democratic and economic progress, urging Ghanaians to deploy the full weight of their democratic rights to demand transparency, reinforce institutions and ensure the long-term policy consistency that investors and development partners rely on.
He framed civic accountability not as a political act alone but as an economic one, making clear that investor trust and policy predictability depend as much on sustained public oversight as they do on government decisions taken in formal institutions.
