Assessing the Effectiveness of Government Communication on Public Policy in Ghana: The Case of Planting for Food and Jobs Policy
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Published:
Aug 31, 2023
Keywords:
Communication, Government Communication, Policy, Planting for Food and Jobs
Main Article Content
Abstract
This paper examined the effectiveness of government communication on public policy in Ghana using the Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) policy as a case. Data was obtained from 412 inhabitants from the Western Region who responded to a set of questionnaires and a structured interview guide. Means, standard deviation, Mann-Whitney U-test, and Kruskal Wallis test were employed for data analysis. The study established that though respondents perceived the PFJ policy as highly relevant to job creation and food production, the overall effect of the policy on job creation was low. No significant differences existed in the views of male and female respondents regarding the perceived effect of the policy on job creation and food production. Government communication strategies to promote awareness, public dialogue, shared understanding, and public support towards the policy were all perceived as moderately effective. However, government communication activities to explain the policy details to the public, mobilize citizens and communities to support the policy, and promote positive behavior change for the policy were perceived as lowly effective by the respondents despite the differences in their ethnic backgrounds. Government press releases and press conferences on the progress of the policy were lowly effective. Though government communication at the implementation stage of the policy was effective, it was generally ineffective during the formulation, monitoring, and evaluation stages of the policy. Measures suggested to sustain the policy include increased commitment from state authorities, increased participation by all stakeholders, improved communication on the policy, grassroots ownership, and de-politicization of the policy.
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Daniel Odoom, Eric Opoku Mensah, Festus Annor Frempong, Christopher Dick-Sagoe, & Lawrencia Agyepong. (2023). Assessing the Effectiveness of Government Communication on Public Policy in Ghana: The Case of Planting for Food and Jobs Policy. PanAfrican Journal of Governance and Development (PJGD), 4(2), 122-148. https://doi.org/10.46404/panjogov.v4i2.4850
Section
Research-based/ Original Articles
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
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Adm. Rev., 74, 676–678.
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Rienner Publishers.
Langellier, K. M. (2010). Performing Somali identity in the diaspora: “Wherever I go I know
who I am.” Cultural Studies.
Lindenfeld, L., & Hoecherl-Alden G. (2008). The role of language education in Maine’s global
economy. Maine Policy Review, 17(1), 54-67.
Liu, B.F., Horsley, J.S., & Yang, K. (2012). Overcoming negative media coverage: Does
government communication matter? J. Public Adm. Res. Theory, 22, 597–621.
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Pandey, S.K., & Garnett, J.L. (2006). Exploring public sector communication performance:
Testing a model and drawing implications. Public Adm. Rev., 66, 37–51.
Pauw, K. (2022). A review of Ghana’s planting for food and jobs program: implementation,
impacts, benefits and costs. Food Security 14, 1321-1335.
Peterson, E. E. (2008). An Introduction to Communication and Public Policy Communication
and Public Policy: Proceedings of the 2008 International Colloquium on Communication.
Profeta, P. (2020). How Women Affect Public Policy. In Gender Equality and Public Policy:
Measuring Progress in Europe (pp. 58-82). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Saunders, M., Lewis, P., & Thornhill, A. (2012). Research Methods for Business Students (6th
ed.). Harlow: Pearson Education Ltd.
Sen, AK (2012). Development as Capability Expansion. In J. DeFilippis & S. Saegert, The
Community Development Reader (2nd Edition), 320-323. London: Routledge.
Sledge, D., & Thomas, H. F. (2021). Public perceptions of the role of government and nonstate
actors in responding to COVID‐19. Risks Hazards Crisis Public Policy, 12, 266–282.
Strother, L., & Gadarian, S. K. (2022). Public Perceptions of the Supreme Court: How
Policy Disagreement Affects Legitimacy. The Forum, 20(1), 87-134.
Suen, L. J., Huang, H. M., & Lee, H. H. (2014). A comparison of convenience and purposive
sampling. The Journal of Nursing, 61(3), 105-111.
Tanko, M., Salifu, I., Saeed, A. S., & Aye, G. (2019). Planting for Food and Jobs: A panacea for
productivity and welfare of rice farmers in Northern Ghana. Cogent Economics & Finance, 7:1.
Western Regional Coordinating Council. (2022). Profile of the WRCC. Sekondi-Takoradi:
WRCC.
Young, I. M. (2000). Inclusion and democracy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Zhuji World (2023). Western Region, Ghana-statistics. Accessed on 12/08/23 at:
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security in Ethiopia. International Journal of Research-Granthaalayah, 5(2), 338-356.
Aberman, N. L., Kufoalor, D. S., & Gilbert, R. (2021). Mapping the implementation process for
subsidized fertilizer distribution under Ghana’s Planting for Food and Jobs Program. GSSP Working Paper 56. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute.
Admassu, M., Kumie, A., & Fantahun, M. (2002). Sustainability of drinking water supply
projects in rural North Gondar, Ethiopia. Ethiopian Journal of Health Development, 3, 221-229.
Akologo, S. Z. (2018). Making the SDG Principle of “Ensure No One Is Left Behind” relevant in
Ghana. A report on the assessment of Planting for Food and Jobs Programme in Ghana. Caritas Ghana.
Anaszewicz, M., & Dobek-Ostrowska, B. (2013). Government communication in democratic
Poland: 20 years after the collapse of communism. In K. Sanders & M. J. Canel (eds.), Government Communication: Cases and Challenges (pp. 154-170). London: Bloomsbury.
Ashfaq, Z. (2016). Structured Interviews. BBA8900-Research methods & approaches in business.
Cogent Education.
Azumah, S. B. (2020). Assessing the Contribution of Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ)
Programme to Improved Seed Security in Ghana. Accra: The National Seed Trade Association of Ghana
Birkinshaw, P., & Varney, M. (2011). Government and Information: The Law Relating to
Access, Disclosure, and Their Regulation. West Sussex: Bloomsbury Professional.
Bowen, H. (2010). Communicating with Policymakers about Development Issues in Ghana: A
Guide for the International Development Community. The Communication Initiative Network. Accessed on 08/08/23 at:
https://www.comminit.com/global/content/communicating-policymakers-about-development-issues-ghana-guide-international-developmen
Brinkhoff, T. (2022). Western Region in Ghana. Accessed on 08/08/23 at:
https://www.vitypopulation.de/en/ghana/admin/01western/
Buaku. F. (2017). Policy implementation and bureaucracy in Ghana Audit Service in the Central
Region. Unpublished PhD Thesis, University of Cape Coast.
Burgess, J., & Green, J. (2018). Youtube: Online video and participatory culture (2nd ed). Polity
Press.
Canel, M. J., & Sanders, K. (2013). Introduction: Mapping the field of government
communication. In K. Sanders & M. J. Canel (eds.), Government communication: Cases and challenges (pp. 1-26). London: Bloomsbury.
Canel, M. J., & Sanders, K. (2014). Is it enough to be strategic? Comparing and defining
professional government communication across disciplinary fields and between countries. In M. J. Canel & K. Voltmer (eds.), Comparing political communication across time and space: New studies in an emerging field (pp. 98-116). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Canel, M. J., & Sanders, K. (2016). Government communication. In G. Mazzoleni (ed.), The
International encyclopedia of political communication (pp. 450-457). Chichester: John Wiley & Sons.
Comfort, LK (2007). Crisis management in Hindsight: Cognition, communication,
coordination, and control. Public Admin. Rev., 67, 118–197.
Crowley, D.W., & Scott, J.T. (2017). Bringing rigor to the use of evidence in policymaking:
Translating early evidence. Public Adm. Rev., 77, 650–655.
Dobson, A. S., Robards, B., & Sarah, N. (2018). Digital intimate publics and social media.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-97607-5
European Commission. (2021). A review of the Ghana Planting for Food and Jobs Program:
2017-2020. Global Food and Nutrition Security.
Falasca, K. & Nord, L. (2013). Structures, strategies, and spin: Government communication in
Sweden. In K. Sanders & M. J. Canel (eds.), Government communication: Cases and challenges (pp. 27-44). London: Bloomsbury.
Fearon, J., Adraki, P. K., & Boateng, V. (2015). Fertilizer subsidy programme in Ghana:
Evidence of performance after six years of implementation. Journal of Biology, Agriculture and Healthcare, 5(21), 100-107.
Figenschou, T. U., Karlsen, R., Kolltveit, K. & Thorbjornsrud, K. (2017). Serving the media
ministers: A mixed methods study on the personalization of ministerial communication. International Journal of Press/Politics, 22(4), 411-430.
FAO. (2020). Support to the Planting for Food and Jobs Campaign. Accra: FAO-Ghana.
Fowler, A. (2000). The virtuous spiral: A guide to sustainability for NGOs in international
development. London: Earthscan.
Frey, L. R., & Carragee, K. M. [eds.]. (2007). Communication activism: Communication for
Social change (vol. 1), Media and performance activism (vol. 2). Cresskill, NJ: Hampton.
Garnett, J.L., & Kouzmin, A. (1997). Handbook of Administrative Communication. New York:
Marcel Dekker.
Garnett, J.L., Kouzmin, A. (2007). Communicating throughout Katrina: Competing and
complementary conceptual lenses on crisis communication. Public Admin. Rev., 67, 171–188.
Garnett, J.L., Marlowe, J., & Pandey, S.K. (2008). Penetrating the performance predicament:
Communication as a mediator or moderator of organizational culture’s impact on public organizational performance. Public Adm. Rev., 68, 266–281.
Ghana Statistical Service. (2023). Populations by Regions. Accra: Ghana Statistical Service.
Glenn, T. (2014). The management and administration of government communications in
Canada. Public Adm., 57, 3–25.
Hassan, M. (2022). Convenience sampling-Method, Types and Examples. Accessed on 12/08/23
at: https://researchmethod.net/convenience-sampling/
Ho, ATK, & Cho, W. (2017). Government communication effectiveness and satisfaction with
police performance: A large-scale survey study. Public Adm. Rev., 77, 228–239.
Howlett, M. (2009). Government communication as a policy tool: A framework for analysis.
Can. Political Sci. Rev., 3, 23.
Howlett, M. (2011). Designing Public Policies: Principles and Instruments. Routledge: New
York, NY, USA.
Johansson, K. M., & Raunio, T. (2019). Government communication in a comparative
perspective in Karl Magnus Johansson & Gunnar Nygren (eds.) Close and distant: Political executive–media relations in four countries, pp. 127-148. Göteborg: Nordicom.
Jung, D. (2014). “Smart” government disclosure through a behavioral economics lens. Public
Adm. Rev., 74, 676–678.
Junne, G., & Verkoren, W. (2005). Post-conflict development: Meeting new challenges. Lynne
Rienner Publishers.
Langellier, K. M. (2010). Performing Somali identity in the diaspora: “Wherever I go I know
who I am.” Cultural Studies.
Lindenfeld, L., & Hoecherl-Alden G. (2008). The role of language education in Maine’s global
economy. Maine Policy Review, 17(1), 54-67.
Liu, B.F., Horsley, J.S., & Yang, K. (2012). Overcoming negative media coverage: Does
government communication matter? J. Public Adm. Res. Theory, 22, 597–621.
Longley, R. (2021). Representative Democracy: Definition, Pros, and Cons. Accessed on
12/08/23 at: thoughtco.com/representative-democracy-definition-pros-cons-4589561.
Ministry of Food and Agriculture. (2021). Planting for Food and Jobs. Accra: MoFA.
Mu, R., Li, Y., & Fu, Y. (2018). Can Government Communication Facilitate Policy
Understanding Toward Energy Conservation? Evidence from an Old Industrial Base in China. Sustainability, 10: 3222.
Nalubiri, A. G. (2010). Sustaining local NGO social intervention benefits in Uganda.
Unpublished master’s thesis, University of The Hague: The Netherlands.
Pandey, S.K., & Garnett, J.L. (2006). Exploring public sector communication performance:
Testing a model and drawing implications. Public Adm. Rev., 66, 37–51.
Pauw, K. (2022). A review of Ghana’s planting for food and jobs program: implementation,
impacts, benefits and costs. Food Security 14, 1321-1335.
Peterson, E. E. (2008). An Introduction to Communication and Public Policy Communication
and Public Policy: Proceedings of the 2008 International Colloquium on Communication.
Profeta, P. (2020). How Women Affect Public Policy. In Gender Equality and Public Policy:
Measuring Progress in Europe (pp. 58-82). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Saunders, M., Lewis, P., & Thornhill, A. (2012). Research Methods for Business Students (6th
ed.). Harlow: Pearson Education Ltd.
Sen, AK (2012). Development as Capability Expansion. In J. DeFilippis & S. Saegert, The
Community Development Reader (2nd Edition), 320-323. London: Routledge.
Sledge, D., & Thomas, H. F. (2021). Public perceptions of the role of government and nonstate
actors in responding to COVID‐19. Risks Hazards Crisis Public Policy, 12, 266–282.
Strother, L., & Gadarian, S. K. (2022). Public Perceptions of the Supreme Court: How
Policy Disagreement Affects Legitimacy. The Forum, 20(1), 87-134.
Suen, L. J., Huang, H. M., & Lee, H. H. (2014). A comparison of convenience and purposive
sampling. The Journal of Nursing, 61(3), 105-111.
Tanko, M., Salifu, I., Saeed, A. S., & Aye, G. (2019). Planting for Food and Jobs: A panacea for
productivity and welfare of rice farmers in Northern Ghana. Cogent Economics & Finance, 7:1.
Western Regional Coordinating Council. (2022). Profile of the WRCC. Sekondi-Takoradi:
WRCC.
Young, I. M. (2000). Inclusion and democracy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Zhuji World (2023). Western Region, Ghana-statistics. Accessed on 12/08/23 at:
https://zhujiworld.com/gh/1258935-western-region/