Abstract
It still remains an unanswered puzzle, why poverty in the three northern regions of Ghana remains very high in the midst of abundant resources and several policy interventions. The purpose of this study is to ascertain the extent to which the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) has improved welfare and reduced poverty in the Wa West District of Ghana. Arguing through the lens of the rights-based theoretical perspective, the study employed the difference-in-difference analytical technique to compare the extent to which poverty in the district has been lessened among beneficiaries of the LEAP programme against non-beneficiaries. The results show that the LEAP programme had a positive impact on food security as LEAP beneficiaries were more satisfied with their food consumption as compared to non-beneficiaries. Also there was a significant difference between the percentages of LEAP beneficiaries enrolled onto the NHIS as compared to non-beneficiaries. On the effect of the LEAP programme on access to credit, the study reveals that there exists a significant difference between the beneficiary group and non-beneficiary group and that access to credit amongst the beneficiary group is significantly higher than the non-beneficiary group. The study finds no statistically significant relationship between the LEAP beneficiary group and the non-beneficiary group in terms of productive activities. However, low monthly cash transfers; irregular monthly payment, bureaucratic administrative procedures are some of the challenges hindering the success of the LEAP program in the Wa West district. Other policy implications are discussed.
Highlights
One of the two major trends that has considerably influenced the political reality of many developing nations is poverty reduction
On the effect of the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme on access to credit, the study reveals that there exists a significant difference between the beneficiary group and non-beneficiary group and that access to credit amongst the beneficiary group is significantly higher than the non-beneficiary group
The results revealed that majority of LEAP beneficiaries visit health facilities as compared to the non-beneficiaries
Summary
One of the two major trends that has considerably influenced the political reality of many developing nations is poverty reduction This became a predominant goal of development policy and had been profoundly influenced by stabilization and Structural Adjustment Programmes until the early 1990s. Stabilization and structural adjustment measures, usually recognized as the “Washington Consensus”, had more and more been criticized because they turned out to be worsening poverty and inequality in some countries (Khor, 2003). It is as a result of this that researchers and policymakers globally engaged in a broad debate about the design and execution of poverty reduction strategies. Cornia (2014) indicates that some national governments among developing countries have on their own or collaboratively with donor and development assistance began to embrace the idea of offering social protection packages in the form of social cash transfers for the very deprived and weak in society
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