The paper investigates empirically the role of institutions as an interactive factor in the FDI, trade and growth nexus in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). We use the Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) technique with data from 34 SSA countries covering the period 1996–2016. We find evidence of a decreasing effect of FDI on economic growth, which increases monotonically without institutions. On the trade openness – growth nexus, we find a positive effect of institutions on trade openness. We also find a positive institutional quality effect on growth; however, no such effect is found on FDI. Human capital development, financial development, and resource rent are equally found to exhibit positive effects on economic growth in SSA. In conclusion, our findings indicate the need for a targeted approach towards improving institutional quality to enhance economic growth and development in SSA.

Purpose: This study investigates the effect of government domestic payment arrears on private investment. The authors argue that an increase in government domestic arrears can reduce private sector investment owing to the competition for credit.Design/methodology/approach: The prediction is empirically tested using data for 33 Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries for the period 2007–2018 using a panel general methods of moment estimation technique. This is also complemented with impulse responses derived from the standard vector autoregressive model.Findings: The results show that an increase in government domestic arrears adversely affects private investment in SSA and most subregional communities within SSA. It also revealed that private investment negatively responds to shocks in government domestic arrears.Originality/value: This is the first study that attempts to investigate the effect of government domestic borrowing arrears on private investment. It seeks to serve as a guide to governments in their domestic borrowing decisions to ensure timely servicing.

The study employed a Structural VAR model, using monthly time series data from 2002 to 2017 to assess the relationship between trade openness and effectiveness of monetary policy in Ghana. The empirical results revealed that as the degree of trade openness increases, monetary policy becomes more effective in reducing the rate of inflation. However, monetary policy is less effective to reduce the output gap. Therefore, the results suggest that monetary policy authorities must take into account the level of trade openness whenever they are formulating monetary policy.

Energy is a key source of economic growth because many production and consumption activities involve energy as a basic input hence central to the operation of any modern economy. The study constructs an energy humanization index and forecasts the various dimensions of energy humanization in Ghana by 2030 using the minimum-maximum normalization approach and assigning equal weight to each of the different indicators and dimensions. The forecast ascertains the achievability of SDG 7. Exponential smoothing was also adopted for forecasting future values. The study employed a dataset spanning from 1980 to 2021. The analysis revealed a positive trend in energy humanization, particularly within the dimension of energy usage. However, the energy security dimension presents a mixed picture. While some aspects, such as energy availability, have consistently improved, others like energy acceptability, affordability, and technology application have declined over time. This decline is concerning because of the importance of these dimensions in a comprehensive energy humanization framework. Without significant interventions, these crucial aspects are expected to worsen, potentially undermining the overall progress in energy humanization. The study recommends the implementation of carbon capture by IPPs, the promotion of electric vehicles, and investment in smart technologies in Ghana. Also, the Ministry of Finance must be circumspect in imposing more levies on petroleum products and electricity tariff although it is an inelastic good.