Vote counting got underway in Ghana on Saturday evening following presidential and parliamentary elections which come amid the country’s worst financial crisis in a generation.
President Nana Akufo-Addo is stepping down next month after serving the allowed two terms in office and 12 candidates are vying to succeed him.
The frontrunners in the race, including the ruling New Patriotric Party’s (NPP) Mahamudu Bawumia, have tried to appeal to young voters who want stable employment.
Bawumia, an Oxford-educated economist and former deputy governor of the country’s central bank, promised to build on the outgoing administration’s efforts and stabilise the economy.
His biggest challenger is the main opposition party’s candidate and former president John Dramani Mahama, who is tipped for a potential comeback.
Mahama has restated his promise to “reset” the country’s on various fronts including the financial, agricultural, environment, and health sectors.
The world’s second-largest cocoa producer and a significant gold miner, Ghana used to be an economic powerhouse and the poster child of democracy in the region.
But in recent years, it has struggled with an economic crisis, including surging inflation and a lack of jobs resulting in widespread discontent with inflation and the rising cost of living.
NPP supporter, Prince Ofosu Amoafo, said he is hoping to see massive development under the next government.
“I’m hoping the NPP will win and continue to complete the projects that we’ve started. We will continue to implement more policies which will ease the Ghanaian people in this country,” he said.
Voter Priscilla Tackie said a crucial issue for her is employment and education.
“If a new government is elected, they should try and build factories so that our children who are unemployed can have a job,” she said.
“And there are a lot of young children whose mothers cannot fund their education. Some cannot even afford one cedi (Ghana currency) for their children.”
Ghanaian’s were also voting for the country’s 276 members of parliament in the polls were generally calm and peaceful.
A beacon of democratic stability in a region shaken by extremist violence and coups, the first official results are expected by Tuesday.
