The Role of Economic Intelligence Components on Economic Security in Ghana

Abstract

Ghana, like many nations, has faced economic security challenges since the post-2008 global economic downturn and the period following the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of this, like other governments, the country has prioritized the utilization of economic intelligence to enhance its economic security. A cross-sectional survey design study, conducted to investigate the implications of economic intelligence sharing on economic security in Ghana, sought to analyse the essential components of economic intelligence crucial for enhancing economic security. The study established that these economic intelligence components have a positive and significant relationship with economic security, with an odds ratio of 1.97. The study was guided by economic security theory, just intelligence theory, and general systems theory. It had a target population of 1168 officers from the government and the West Africa Security and Intelligence Network (WASIN), an NGO. The sample size comprised 298 purposively selected officers. Questionnaires, key informant interviews, and documentary analysis were used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data, which were respectively analysed using ordinal logistic regression and thematic analysis. This paper is a detailed presentation of the study findings on the importance of economic intelligence components on economic security.