Analyzing socio economic situations in ghana by dr. julius kwaku kattah.pptx final

ANALYZING SOCIO-
ECONOMIC
SITUATIONS IN
GHANA
DR. JULIUS KWAKU KATTAH

INTRODUCTION
 Social economics is also referred to as
socioeconomics. Social economics is primarily
concerned with the interplay between social
processes and economic activity within a society.
 Social economics may attempt to explain how a
particular social group or socioeconomic class
behaves within a society, including their actions as
consumers.
SOCIO-ECONOMIC ANALYSIS IN GHANA
2

INTRO
 What Does "socio-economic" Mean? "Socioeconomic"
refers to the influence of finances and educational
advantages on social status. The term is most often
used in explanations of class.
3

WHAT ARE THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC
CHARACTERISTICS?
 A socio-economic class is a group of people with
similar characteristics.
 These characteristics can
include social and economic standing, level of
education, current profession, and ethnic background
or heritage.
4

HOW DO YOU MEASURE SOCIO-
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT?
 There are various measures of checking socio-
economic development of the developing or
least developed countries for examples HDI, PCI, GNI,
Gini -coefficient, Gross Domestic Happiness Index
(GDHI).
5

SOCIO-ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT
 Socio-economic development is the process of social
and economic development in a society. Socio-
economic development is measured with indicators, such
as GDP, life expectancy, literacy and levels of
employment.
 Changes in less-tangible factors are also considered, such
as personal dignity, freedom of association, personal
safety and freedom from fear of physical harm, and the
extent of participation in civil society.
 Causes of socio-economic impacts are, for example, new
technologies, changes in laws, changes in the physical
environment and ecological changes.
6

WHAT IS CONSIDERED A SOCIO-
ECONOMIC INDICATOR?
 Key indicators of the economic and educational
composition of a community that can
be considered individually and in combinations and
that typically can be measured at multiple units of
geography include:
 1) Income, such as average household income and
per capita income;
 2) Poverty rate, percentage of households.
7

SOCIO-ECONOMIC
FACTORS
 Socio-economic factors are lifestyle components and
measurements of both financial viability and social standing.
 They directly influence social privilege and levels of financial
independence.
 Factors such as health status, income, environment and
education are studied by sociologists in terms of how they each
affect human behaviours and circumstances.
 As lifestyle measurements, they are believed to be directly
correlated to patterns of drug use, food choices, migration,
disease prevalence and rates of mortality in human populations.
8

SOCIO-ECONOMIC
FACTORS
 Level of Education
In the most obvious way, educational levels influence economic status, as
higher paying jobs tend to require advanced or specialized
education.
Education, however, also determines social status and allows people to
trust those who are educated in their fields of employment.
Car mechanics may not be generally considered to be as smart as
attorneys, but when a car needs repair, a consumer respects a
mechanic's expertise to fix the problem.
Trained health care professionals are able to influence the eating and
exercise behaviours of entire communities through public campaigns.
If they were not held in high social regard, this would not be possible.
9

INCOME AND ASSETS
 Income and Assets
Net income is a direct contributor to what a single person or
family can afford to spend. Income determines
neighbourhood choices and living conditions.
It is often the deciding factor in higher educational pursuits.
People living closer to the poverty line may forego one
necessity for another, such as medicine for food or doctor
visit co-pays for utility bills.
Others with income to spare may spend or save money to
contribute to lifestyle freedoms such as travel, early
retirement accounts and various luxury items.
10

HEALTH AND LIFESTYLE
 Health and Lifestyle
Health status is a definite measurement of socio-economic status.
Poor health, whether brought on by genetic predispositions,
accidents or lifestyle choices, is able to render a person stagnant.
Illness can hinder progress in terms of education and
employment options.
Health status affects mobility and the ability to socialize, thereby
restricting the social circle of a lot of sick people. Certain
conditions require constant monitoring by health care
professionals and a medication-dependent lifestyle, which can
be very costly.
Disabled persons are often limited financially by a defined social
security income, just like elderly people.
11

QUALITY OF
NEIGHBORHOOD
 Quality of Neighbourhoods
Environment does not have to determine socio-economic status, but
is often a reflection of it. An adult may choose to live in a lower
income neighbourhood to save money on rent. The same person
may also choose to socialize with workmates instead of
neighbours. In this instance, living environment is not a factor in
personal socio-economy.
However, children born and raised in the same environment may be
socially restricted, as they may be forced to attend public
schools in an area zoned for their home address. Likewise,
ingrained social behaviours in higher income communities are
often reflected in the adolescent population. It is difficult for
researchers to determine if observed group behaviours are
attributable to income status or social environments.
12

THE BUDGET AND SOCIO-
ECONOMIC
 In April 2020, the current government announced a
‘free water, free electricity policy’ to fully cover the bills
of low-income consumers and a 50% reduction for
those who fell outside this category.
 This package was extended for more than 12 months
but reality was that it was limited to only those who
had access.
13

ECONOMIC
 The general feeling is that contrary to expectations,
the 2021 budget did not bring much relief as
envisaged. In line with its theme “Completion,
Consolidation, and Continuation”, the average tax
payer, mainly, workers are paying more for the huge
COVID-19 expenses in the preceding year, 2020 which
was an electioneering year.
 Meanwhile, available statistics indicate that a
significant number of salaried workers (about 60,000)
have lost their jobs since April 2020 because of COVID-
19.
14

ECONOMIC
 One percentage point increase in the National Health
Insurance Levy and a one percentage point increase
in the VAT Flat Rate to support expenditures related to
COVID-19, which according to the Finance Minister
cost the state an amount of GH¢19.7 billion
 Energy Sector Recovery Levy of 20 pesewas per liter
on the price of petrol and diesel.
 Financial sector cleanup levy
15

WAGES AND SALARIES
 For the period under review, salaried workers have been worse
off. In 2020, for example, when the impact of COVID-19 was
most felt, the daily minimum wage in Ghana stood at 11.82
Ghanaian Cedis (GHS) (approximately 2.03 U.S. dollars),
representing an increase of 1.17 GHS (around 0.2 U.S. dollars)
from 2019.
 A comparative analysis to previous years indicates that it is so far
the lowest, resulting in worsening economic conditions. In 2012,
the daily minimum wage was GH¢4.48, an average of 20.16%
from the previous year.
 In 2013, this shot up by 16.94% (GH¢5.24) to GH¢20.5 per month;
14.5% in 2014; 16.7% in 2015 which pegged it at GH¢7, raised by
10% in 2016 to GHc8:00 and again by 10% in 2017 raising the
figure to a meager GH8.80.
16

SALARIES AND EXCHANGE
RATE
 For the average Ghanaian worker and their
dependants in general, the cedi-dollar ratio which
unfortunately has become a determinant factor in the
pricing of commodities, because of the dominance of
imported goods, has also seen a significant drop over
the past four years from GH¢ 4.22392 to $1 in
December 2016 to GH¢6.054 compared to $1 as of
July 2021.
 Historical data from the National Petroleum Authority
(NPA) since 2015 indicate that fuel prices have
doubled; from an average of GHS 2.7 per liter then to
GHS 5.4 per liter on average as of March 2021.
17

SALARIES AND PRICES
 At the moment, the price of petrol is Ghc 6.1 per liter.
 It is also informative to note that majority of Ghanaian
workers depend on the public transport system,
commuting on daily basis from home to work.
Ghanaians generally and workers in particular are
bearing the consequential effect of the rise in fuel
prices on lorry fares, which is not commensurate to the
current daily minimum wage.
18

COST OF LIVING
 The frequent labour agitations in recent times must be a
major source of concern.
 Over the past months there have been reported cases of
labour agitations mainly from the education and health
sectors of the public service. The reasons for these worker
agitations bother mostly on conditions of service.
 This is a strong indication that, all is not well with the
labour front, and this therefore calls for an important
consideration towards charting workable solutions to the
general conditions of service for public sector workers.
19

COST OF LIVING
 There is an approved 4% salary increment for pubic
sector workers for year 2021-2022; and the explanation
is that, it was based on an agreement or
understanding that within the period government shall
not declare any public sector worker redundant and
also that there shall not be a freeze on employment in
the public service.
 There is need for organized labour leadership to
clearly explain this decision or agreement to the
general workforce to avoid unnecessary labour
agitations because there seem to be some level of
uneasy calm among the workers.
20

CONCLUSION
21

EFFECTS OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC
FACTORS ON EMPLOYMENT
 Low and high employment have far-reaching
consequences on the health and well-being of the
large masses of the population.
 The criterion of public policies, including employment,
must be the assurance of socio-economic
reproduction for the maintenance of human life,
health and survival, not maximum output and
employment without regard for genuine individual
and social needs.
22

 Social and environmental indicators and substantive
norms defined in terms of minimum requirements and
social objectives need to be made the guidelines of
public action.
23

 In this vein, genuine full employment must be made a
continuous objective and a fundamental requirement
for the development of a country.
24

SOCIO-ECONOMIC FACTORS
ON DEVELOPMENT
 There are some important socio-economic factors that
aid economic development.
 Social and economic factors such as income,
education, employment, community safety and social
supports can significantly affect how long we live.
 These factors affect our ability to make choices, afford
medical care and housing, manage stress, and more.
25

FINALLY
 Employment is a major socio-economic development
factor. Employment characteristics cover the
following:
 Historical employment
 Income levels
 Major employers
 Major industrial sectors
 Place of work
 Poverty rates
 Unemployment rates
26

27

CONTACT:
 Email: dr.jkkattah57@yahoo.com
 juliuskattah@gmail.com
 copyright@Dr. Julius Kwaku Kattah, 2021
28

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