Strategic adviser and director, Yaw Nsarkoh, has described education as the ultimate prescription for building a good society in Ghana.
He stressed that knowledge is the most powerful productive force and must be embraced if the country is to experience true liberation.
Speaking on Springboard, Your Virtual University, with Rev. Albert Ocran, Mr Nsarkoh closed the 17th-anniversary Thinkathon series on “The Power of Ideas” with a call for a more profound rethink of development.
“Educate, educate, educate. Knowledge is the primary productive force. Embrace it. If we get it, we will liberate our society,” he said.
He argued that economic growth statistics, such as reduced inflation, mean little if they do not translate into better livelihoods for citizens.
“The destination is what Nkrumah was talking about. Are there more schools? Do people have good food to eat? Have we created a cultural environment where people can think?
“Our society is drowning in uncollected garbage. Is this a society in which you can imagine the future?” he asked.
The strategic Advisor further questioned the fairness of Ghana’s democracy, warning that it risks trapping generations in cycles of poverty.
“Today in your village, somebody born into a mud house, can they become Rev. Albert Ocran in one lifetime?
“If they cannot, then what we are saying is that we have built a Santa Claus democracy in which the poor remain poor. Their children will keep giving birth to the poor,” he cautioned.
He described this “Santa Claus democracy” as an over-monetised system that treats citizens as tokens to be bought during elections, excluding them from meaningful participation in national progress.
Quoting Wole Soyinka, Nobel Laureate in literature, he said Africa’s variant of democracy has become “a public auction for the highest bidder.”
Mr Nsarkoh added that true development must be measured not by figures but by the creation of opportunities, a thinking culture, and a green, sustainable environment where every citizen has the chance to rise.
About Springboard,
Your Virtual University. Springboard, Your Virtual University, is a weekly motivational and personal development broadcast hosted by Rev. Albert Ocran.
It airs every Sunday at 7 PM on Springboard Channel (YouTube) and Joy FM, and at 9 PM on Joy News TV.
The Thinkathon series brought together thought leaders from various fields to explore the power of ideas in shaping society.
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