-Chief of Staff signals shift from pilot projects to cross-economy productivity drive
Chief of Staff Julius Debrah has signalled a strategic shift in Ghana’s productivity agenda, hosting a high-level JICA delegation to discuss moving the Kaizen philosophy from a project-based intervention to a “sustained national movement”.
The meeting, disclosed in a Debrah social media posting, focused on embedding continuous improvement, operational efficiency and innovation across both public and private sectors with direct implications for the Mahama administration’s industrialization and job creation priorities.
Led by JICA Chief Representative Takayuki Uchiyama, and including Miwa Ito (Senior Representative), Masashi Yamanaka (JICA Expert), Sylvester (JICA Governance Team), Naho Aizu (Private Sector Representative), and Nana Adwoa Konadu Asiam (Programme Specialist, Private Sector). Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) CEO Margaret Ansei also attended.
Kaizen the Japanese philosophy of continuous, incremental improvement has been piloted in Ghana through partnerships with JICA, UNIDO and the Kaizen Excellence Center of Ethiopia. Debrah’s post suggests the government now wants to scale it beyond MSMEs into a cross-economy productivity drive.
Under President John Dramani Mahama, the administration is keen to demonstrate a coherent industrial transformation strategy. Kaizen offers a technocratic, non-political framework to boost competitiveness attractive for a government facing high expectations on job creation.
But the challenge is real. Transitioning from donor-supported projects to a home-grown national movement requires institutional capacity, sustained funding and buy-in from a bureaucracy not known for embracing continuous change.
What was said: Debrah commended JICA, UNIDO, Ethiopia’s Kaizen centre and GEA for “continued partnership and commitment”. He noted “significant progress” has already been made in embedding Kaizen within MSMEs.
The carefully worded statement avoided specific targets or timelines. That will come later if the movement gains traction.
Japan is a key development partner. Kaizen is the vehicle. The Mahama government wants to drive productivity as a pillar of its economic agenda. Whether the bureaucracy can adopt the philosophy or the initiative remains another well-funded pilot is the real test.