BRICS: Ghana must approach membership with clear strategy – Prof Bokpin

By: Eugene Dogbatse Atsu
Professor of Finance at the University of Ghana Business School, Prof. Godfred Bokpin, has urged the government to pursue Ghana’s proposed membership of BRICS with caution.

Prof Bokpin’s remarks come after Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa announced that Ghana intends to submit an application to join BRICS as part of efforts to diversify the country’s international partnerships, expand economic opportunities and deepen cooperation with countries of the Global South.

Speaking on Joy FM on Thursday, October 8, Prof Bokpin said Ghana must clearly define its objectives before seeking membership in the economic bloc, which includes major emerging economies such as Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS).

He explained that joining BRICS should form part of a broader foreign and economic policy strategy that allows Ghana to engage multiple global economic powers while safeguarding its national interests.

“Joining BRICS necessarily should not be pursued as a substitution strategy for exiting other blocs or within other political leanings that we have,” Prof Bokpin said.

According to him, although BRICS has become an influential force in the global economy, Ghana must also consider the interests and reactions of its traditional development and trade partners.

“We need to situate all of this within the broader foreign policy and economic policy that allows us to recognise that yes, BRICS is a dominant force, but there are other players also, and remember that there will also be a pushback from our traditional partners as well. They are equally watching,” he stated.

He noted that the government should establish a clear roadmap outlining what Ghana expects to gain from BRICS membership, the limits of its engagement and the timeline for achieving its goals.

“We need to engage with our eyes open. We need to make this application to join BRICS with our eyes open,” he said.

The economist cautioned against viewing BRICS membership as a quick solution to Ghana’s economic challenges, arguing that participation in international economic blocs does not automatically translate into economic transformation.

“Remember that BRICS wasn’t just designed to transform our economy. The motives are quite clear, just like any other economic bloc that you want to join,” he said.

Drawing parallels with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Prof Bokpin said Ghana’s experience demonstrates that membership alone does not guarantee economic benefits.

He recalled that despite Ghana being among the first countries to ratify the AfCFTA agreement and hosting its secretariat, the country still needed to undertake significant reforms to fully benefit from the continental market.

“The fact that we are hosting the secretariat necessarily doesn’t mean we’ll host the gains emanating from the African Continental Free Trade. This is not a host win. You have to work hard,” he said.

Prof Bokpin stressed that Ghana must first strengthen its domestic economy and create an environment that enables local businesses to compete successfully before expecting them to thrive in international markets.

He said many Ghanaian firms continue to struggle against imported products, raising concerns about the competitiveness of local industries.

“You have to create the enabling environment for your businesses to be able to compete even within Ghana. You are talking about competing and winning within Ghana, then you can talk about competing and winning outside Ghana,” he stated.

He further encouraged the Minister of Finance to utilise the fiscal space created through recent economic reforms to support businesses and expand productive capacity.

“And I want to encourage the Minister of Finance that this is the time for Ghana because we’ve created some fiscal space, and I believe that we need to act at scale and on time to be able to respond to the developmental challenges for us to be able to compete and win within and then we can think about winning without,” he said