The Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has revealed that it costs an estimated $150 million to win a presidential election in Ghana, and approximately $600,000 to secure a parliamentary seat.

According to the CDD, the high financial demands of political campaigns are a major driver of corruption in the country.

Director of Programmes at CDD-Ghana, Dr. Kojo Asante, expressed deep concern about the situation during a presentation to the Constitutional Review Committee.

“When political actors, appointed or elected, enter government having spent excessive amounts of money from internal party processes to national elections, CDD estimates that it costs approximately $650,000—that is about GH¢10 million—to be able to win a parliamentary seat. And between 100 million to 150 million to win the presidency,” he stated.

“This financial burden creates a perversed incentive for office holders to want to recoup campaign expenditure through corrupt means,” Dr. Asante added.