…Why values, not vanity, anchor the foundations of lasting prosperity
A compass drifting from true north
Beneath the ceremonial grandeur and economic statistics lies a sobering reality: in parts of the developing world, and increasingly in Ghana and South Africa, the moral compass is drifting off course.
Worth is no longer measured by service to society, innovation, or public contribution, but by the size of a house, the shine of a car, or the exclusivity of a watch. This is not the narrative of poverty many would prefer to cling to; it is the reality of values bent towards materialism.
As the African proverb warns, “When the drum of greed is beaten too loudly, it drowns out the song of integrity.” The tragedy is not that people aspire to better lives; ambition, when grounded in integrity, is a powerful driver of progress.
The true tragedy is that in the rush for symbols of wealth, values are abandoned like scaffolding after a hurried and unstable construction. This moral erosion does not merely distort personal choices; it infiltrates institutions, undermines governance, and skews markets towards self-interest rather than shared growth.
Materialism – Poverty’s convenient alibi
A comforting fiction persists that greed and corruption are the offspring of poverty. Yet the evidence, in Ghana and beyond, tells another story: greed often thrives most vigorously where there is already enough.
Illegal mining, for example, is not fuelled solely by the desperately poor, but by well-connected operators with capital, influence, and the protection of political patronage. The same dynamic drives procurement fraud, land grabs, and environmental exploitation.
Transparency International’s 2023 Corruption Perceptions Index underscores this point: higher per capita income does not guarantee lower corruption when institutions lack moral enforcement.
South Africa, with a GDP per capita exceeding US$6,700, has wrestled with state capture scandals of historic scale, proving that greed recognises no income brackets. In Ghana, the cost of environmental degradation—driven by illegal mining and logging exceeds 7percent of GDP annually, an expensive ledger of misplaced priorities and compromised values.
The unseen casualties of neglect
The sudden, tragic death of a public servant may dominate headlines, yet it is only the visible crest of a much deeper wave of loss. Beneath the surface, contaminated rivers claim health and livelihoods in silence.
Degraded farmlands erase rural economies without ceremony. Polluted air shortens lives with no national broadcast. The World Bank warns that by 2050, climate-related impacts in sub-Saharan Africa could displace up to 86 million people internally in search of liveable conditions.
In Ghana, deforestation and water pollution threaten the cocoa industry, a vital pillar of rural employment and export revenue. The link to materialism is direct: when the quick gains of illegal logging outweigh the patient rewards of sustainable forestry, the forest vanishes; when the profit from sand mining eclipses the community’s need for clean water, the riverbed is stripped bare. This is the economics of the short-sighted, a profit-and-loss sheet that records immediate cash but ignores the compounded cost to future generations.
African lessons in discipline and renewal
Not every African narrative is steeped in decline. Rwanda’s transformation offers a counterpoint worthy of study. By making corruption socially unacceptable and embedding accountability into public service, Rwanda increased its GDP per capita from US$416 in 2000 to over US$900 in 2022. Public cleanliness became both a national identity and an economic asset, drawing tourism and investment.
Botswana presents another example. Through disciplined management of diamond revenues, it avoided the so-called “resource curse” and channelled wealth into education, healthcare, and infrastructure. These successes were not accidental; they were the result of deliberate, often unpopular decisions anchored in moral discipline. As the Tswana saying reminds us, “A house built with crooked walls will forever cast a crooked shadow.” Straighten the moral walls, and the economic shadow follows suit.
Global proof that morality fuels prosperity
History provides ample evidence that moral renewal, when coupled with disciplined governance, is a catalyst for prosperity. In the 1960s, Singapore was plagued by corruption, poverty, and limited natural resources. Within a generation, it transformed into a global trade and finance hub by enforcing the principle that public office was a trust, not a personal till. Today, its GDP per capita exceeds US$80,000, and its ports handle over 37 million containers annually.
South Korea’s journey from post-war devastation to a technological powerhouse followed a similar path, anchored by integrity in public contracts, long-term planning, and industrial discipline. Even Estonia, a small nation with limited resources, digitised its public services to reduce petty corruption, cut bureaucratic waste, and create a thriving tech start-up ecosystem. The lesson is consistent: prosperity follows when nations hardwire integrity into governance and make moral discipline a non-negotiable standard.
The visible deaths are only the beginning
In Ghana, the loss of dedicated public servants in tragic accidents rightly triggers national mourning. However, these moments, though poignant, are symptoms of a deeper malady. The greater tragedy is the slow erosion of rivers, soils, and public trust. When water sources are poisoned by illegal mining, it is not merely an environmental issue; it is a generational economic wound.
The Ghana Water Company has warned that treating polluted water from the Pra and Ankobra rivers costs several times more than sourcing clean water. This translates into higher tariffs, reduced access, and heavier burdens on households and businesses. If moral erosion continues unchecked, the economic collapse will not arrive with a dramatic crash, but with a slow, grinding erosion of competitiveness, productivity, and public health.
Turning the moral tide into jobs and innovation
Here lies the opportunity embedded in the inconvenient truth: reversing moral decay is not only an ethical imperative, it is an economic growth strategy. Consider the recycling sector. South Africa’s recycling economy sustains over 60,000 informal jobs while easing environmental pressure. Kenya’s ban on single-use plastics has sparked an entire cottage industry of eco-friendly packaging producers. In Rwanda, strict environmental enforcement has created formal jobs in waste management and renewable energy.
Ghana could harness similar potential. Plastic waste collection and recycling could employ tens of thousands, reduce urban flooding caused by blocked drains, and create raw materials for local manufacturing. Green construction, eco-tourism, and organic agriculture all represent sectors where moral discipline and respect for environmental limits align directly with job creation and export potential. In every case, entrepreneurship thrives best in clear, rule-based environments where short-term exploitation is replaced by long-term stewardship. As the Akan proverb cautions: “You do not uproot the yam if you wish to eat from it again.”
A clarion call for generational courage
None of these shifts will occur by accident. They require leadership willing to make unpopular decisions in the short term and citizens prepared to reject the seductive ease of destructive gains. What is needed is a form of moral infrastructure, laws, norms, and role models that reinforce the principle that status is built through service, not excess.
Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew once said, “If you want to be a millionaire in politics, you should stay out of politics.” This is a mindset Ghana, and many nations like it, must embrace: if you wish to pursue quick wealth, do not do so at the expense of rivers, forests, and public trust. Our time is finite. Our resources, even more so. But our capacity to change course is limitless, provided we act now. If we fail, the next generation will not inherit our houses or cars, but our debts, degraded lands, and poisoned waters.
The choice is ours today, not tomorrow
It is no longer enough to mourn the dead while ignoring the dying planet beneath our feet. As another African proverb warns: “A nation that buries its moral compass will one day lose its way entirely.” The choice is before us: continue down a path where materialism erodes the very foundations of progress, or build an economy rooted in values that can withstand the pressures of time and temptation.
The road to prosperity has always been paved with values, not vanity. The sooner we accept this inconvenient truth, the sooner we can realign our moral axis and with it, the nation’s horizon and long-term economic emancipation.
>>>the writer is a globally celebrated thought leader, Chartered Director, industrial engineer, supply chain management expert, and social entrepreneur known for his transformative contributions to industrialisation, procurement, and strategic sourcing in developing nations.
As Africa’s first Professor Extraordinaire for Supply Chain Governance and Industrialization, he has advised governments, businesses, and policymakers, driving sustainability and growth. During his tenure as Chairman of the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) and Labadi Beach Hotel, he led these institutions to global recognition for innovation and operational excellence. He is also the past chairman of the Public Procurement Authority.
A prolific author of over 90 publications, he is the creator of NyansaKasa (Words of Wisdom), a thought-provoking platform with over one million daily readers. Through his visionary leadership, Professor Boateng continues to inspire ethical governance, innovation, and youth empowerment, driving Africa toward a sustainable and inclusive future.
