Ghana has a long-standing history of struggling with pervasive corruption, particularly in the public sector.

A problem, the former president of Ghana, John Agyekum Kuffour, believes has become pervasive and institutionalised due to poor remuneration and low salaries and wages.

Speaking during an interview with JoyNews on Tuesday, March 10, the former President recommended higher salaries and better pay structures to annihilate this canker, which has eaten into the pubic sector as a way to curb this problem, arguing that fair compensation would reduce the temptation to engage in corrupt practices while strengthening accountability and governance.

“Given our situation, I have thought about corruption and identified two major sources of it. One is the poor pay and poor remuneration system that our society somehow seems to be shy of tackling. The pay system is really not good.

If I go to a ministry of government, for example, a highly trained director who has served for 10 or 20 years, in current times, the monthly net take-home pay might not even go beyond 30,000 Ghana cedis. Given the inflationary situation we are in, such a director perhaps has a family, a wife and maybe four children.

Naturally, the father would want the children to have some of the best education. He would want to live decently, have a decent home, not something exaggerated, and would want a car. He is also a social person, so naturally, he would want to bear the social responsibilities that come with our traditions, such as supporting the extended family”, the former president said, citing the case of a high-ranking police officer.

He believes that a well-paid public servant helps improve governance while enforcing strict penalties for those who still engage in corrupt practices, citing the famous Lee Kuan Yew, who insisted that ministers and senior public officials should be paid salaries just as heads and bosses of top corporate executives to attract and retain the best talent in government.

“The people I used to fashion these policies are as good as the people in the corporate world getting fat salaries, so they must be paid like the people in the corporate world,” Mr Kufuor quoted Lee Kuan Yew as saying.

Per reports, Members of Parliament earn about GH₵ 15,000–18,000 per month, including allowances, while heads of major corporate institutions such as Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), earn vastly more, averaging GH₵ 338 million to GH₵ 1 billion annually, depending on the sector and company size.

He suggested that by that standard, Ghana’s top political offices are significantly underpaid compared to the level of responsibility and expertise required.

Mr Kufuor, however, stressed that better salaries must be matched with strict accountability measures.

“When you choose to be in the public sector, to be well-paid, and you allow yourself to be tempted into red tape and corruption, and they catch you, some of the worst punishments would be visited on you,” he said.

Citing the Ghana Police Service and their possible take-home, Mr Kuffour added that,

“if you look at our police system, for example, I don't think a superintendent’s take-home pay goes beyond 5,000 Ghana cedis a month. Yet these are people who are supposed to uphold law and order in our system.

So again, they also try to top up their income. The same thing happens in the courts, among lawyers, politicians, and even academics. Corruption is therefore so pervasive in the system, and I have traced much of it largely to remuneration that is not realistic.”

Mr Kufuor, who served two terms as president from 2001 to 2009 under the New Patriotic Party, said a comprehensive rethink of how Ghana compensates its public servants is necessary if the country wants to reduce corruption and improve efficiency in public administration.

Ghana's corruption Index

Ghana has seen a marginal decline in corruption, ranking 43 out of 100 in the 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index.

This was contained in a report shared by Transparency International on Tuesday, February 10, 2026. According to the report, out of the 182 nations assessed, Ghana ranked 76th globally, but this, according to experts, indicates little to no improvement in Ghana’s fight against corruption.

The 43% marks a one-point increase from the 42 recorded in 2024. However, according to the organisation's methodology, this does not constitute a significant change.

The organisation’s Board Chair, François Valérian, highlighted the need for local and international collaboration in tackling corruption.

"In an interconnected world, we need both national action and multilateral cooperation to protect the public interest and tackle shared challenges like corruption. At a time when we're seeing a dangerous disregard for international norms from some states, we need to protect a rules-based global order that is grounded in transparency, accountability to citizens and respect for human rights," he said.

Ghana has remained stuck at a CPI score of 43 since 2020, except for the dip to 42 last year. The country's highest score was 48 in 2014, after which it experienced a downward trajectory until 2018.

The assessment comes at a time when many still raise concerns about Ghana’s politicised judicial system and law enforcement agencies.

The dismissal of the former Chief Justice, petitions for the removal of heads of independent institutions, and the discontinuation of corruption cases through a controversial 60:40 settlement arrangement have raised questions about executive interference.

The “60:40 corruption case settlement arrangement” in Ghana refers to a controversial practice where corruption-related prosecutions were reportedly discontinued if the accused agreed to return 60% of the misappropriated funds while retaining 40%.

This has created a decline in confidence in the government and the judicial system following a well-sold launch of Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL).