The Determinants of Economic Growth in Ghana: New Empirical Evidence

Abstract

This article deals with an investigation into the determinants of economic growth in Ghana over the period from 1975 to 2014. In particular, we investigated the impact of physical capital, human capital, labour, government expenditure, inflation, foreign aid, foreign direct investment, financial development, globalization and debt servicing on economic performance within an augmented Solow growth model. It was found that, in the long run, both human capital and foreign aid have a positive influence on output, while labour, financial development and debt servicing have a negative impact on output. It was also found that, in the short run, government expenditure and foreign aid have a positive influence on economic growth, while labour, inflation and financial development have a negative impact on economic growth. These findings hold important policy implications for the country.