Heritage foundation, DI to promote politics of ideas and values

There are growing concerns over the quality of politics in Ghana. Why people choose to support particular political parties. What motivates allegiances and how all that can affect the nature of our democracy and the general good that society benefits from it.

The Danquah Institute, in collaboration with other civil society groups, has been looking at how to promote the politics of ideas and values in Ghana’s democracy.

In line with this, The Danquah Institute will this week host Anthony Kim, Research Manager, Index of Economic Freedom, and Senior Policy Analyst at the Institute of Economic Freedom and Opportunity at the prestigious Washington-based think tank, the Heritage Foundation.

His three-day visit to Ghana will involve a series of interactions with key members of civil society, student leaders, the media, academia, political figures and other influential people involved in shaping policies in our country.

The Heritage Foundation is a highly reputable research and educational institution. It has a mission to formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, and individual freedom. It also believes in the creation and promotion of environments where civil societies flourish.

The Danquah Institute similarly believes that every progress-seeking society must necessarily and deliberately promote the advancement of a competitive political environment based on values and ideas. We believe a debate on how our society can consciously shift our politics from one motivated by patronage to values and ideas is a necessary one, which is well overdue.

Coming from a globally renowned think tank reputed for its entrepreneurship in public policy ideas and values, Anthony Kim will be sharing with his Ghanaian audience how such values and ideas have shaped American civilization and society and what positive lessons a developing nation like Ghana can learn from the rich experiences of older democracies and from Ghana’s own traditional value systems.

As part of his interactions, Anthony Kim will be meeting with student leaders selected from various Ghanaian universities. There will also be an academic roundtable discussion with university lecturers. Both will be hosted at the conference room of Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana, Legon. Anthony Kim will also interact with heads of civil society organizations on the platform of the Civic Forum Initiative (CFI), an umbrella body comprising civil society organizations in Ghana.

He will also be hosted on both television and radio on discussions with other personalities on the politics of ideas and values.

He will also visit the head of the National Development Planning Commission, and later on Friday, share ideas with the leadership of Parliament.

The DI guest is known for his research into international economic issues at The Heritage Foundation, with a focus on economic freedom and free trade. Kim is co-editor of the Index, a respected reference which Heritage publishes in partnership with The Wall Street Journal. It tracks the march of economic freedom around the world by measuring 10 freedoms – from property rights to entrepreneurship – in 186 countries.

He joined Heritage in 2001. Before then, Kim studied economics at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N. J. He holds a master's degree in international trade and investment policy from the Elliott School of International Affairs at the George Washington University. Kim arrives in Ghana on Wednesday, 9th December and leaves Friday, 11th December.