China's State-Capitalist Development Model: Is It Viable in Ghana?

IF 1.4 Q2 POLITICAL SCIENCE Politics & Policy Pub Date : 2025-02-17 DOI:10.1111/polp.70009

Daniel Abankwa

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Abstract

The relative success of China's state-capitalist model has reignited debates about state centrality in economic growth and the feasibility of replicating the model in developing countries. Shedding new light on the ongoing dialogue, this study examines the viability of China's model in Ghana and applies the property rights, public choice, and principal-agent theories to analyze State-Owned Enterprise (SOE) reforms in Ghana and China. It argues that although Ghana's SOE sector under erstwhile President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo saw promising reforms mirroring China's early SOE reforms, the long-term viability of a state-capitalist approach is bleak. This is attributable to the non-facilitatory political practices like regular political transitions and winner-takes-all politics, as well as the persistent operational inefficiencies in Ghana's SOE sector. The article contributes to the scholarly narrative suggesting that a wave of China's state capitalist model is gaining prominence in developing countries and potentially overshadowing the neoliberal economic systems prevalent in those countries.

Duggan, N. 2020. “China—The Champion of the Developing World: A Study of China's New Development Model and Its Role in Changing Global Economic Governance.” Politics & Policy 48, no. 5. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12377.

Ganda, W. D. 2020. “The China Model in Zimbabwe: The Belt and Road Initiative and Beyond.” Politics & Policy 48, no. 5. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12373.

Kinyondo, A. A. 2020. “Does Tanzania's Development Trajectory Borrow from the China Model?” Politics & Policy 48, no. 5:960–987. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12372.

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