U.S. companies are strongly encouraged to contact the U.S. Commercial Service Ghana for assistance prior to bidding on government projects in order to receive information on the market, which can be helpful when preparing a successful proposal. It can also assist in obtaining more information about a proposed project.
Despite nominally being covered by the Public Procurement Act and its tender processes, procurement processes can often be sole source and lack clear timeframes and procedures. Ghana is not a party to the World Trade Organization Agreement on Government Procurement and has very few other international treaty obligations in the government procurement space. In March 2025, Ghanaian President Mahama pledged that under his leadership, single-source contracts would only be allowed in genuine emergencies. He further said his administration would introduce value-for-money audits on government projects above a certain threshold to prevent inflated costs and corruption.
Factors that add value to bids/proposals for public tenders include identifying a funding source, providing a feasibility study for the project, and having a partnership with a local company. Companies should be very wary of unsolicited requests to participate in government tenders. These are very often advance fee schemes and not real procurements. Annually, the Commercial Service Ghana sees dozens of instances of fraudulent companies putting forward nonexistent government tenders and using fake websites that appear to be Ghanaian-related or international organization-related procuring agencies. The U.S. Commercial Service can help verify the legitimacy of an unsolicited request for participation in a government tender.
General Principles
Public Procurement in Ghana is governed by the Public Procurement Act of 2003 (Act No. 663) (the Act) as amended by the Public Procurement (Amendment) Act of 2016 (Act No. 914 – the Amendment Act). It establishes the Public Procurement Authority as responsible for overseeing the procurement process and providing guidance to procuring entities. The nominal underlying principles of public procurement in Ghana are transparency, accountability, value for money, fairness, and non-discrimination, which are in line with the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law’s (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Procurement.
There is a requirement for the process to be carried out through the competitive bidding process. Government ministries, departments, agencies, and local governments have their own tender committees, which buy directly from suppliers. However, not all tenders must be internationally competitively tendered. In fact, the World Trade Organization (WTO) assessed in 2022 that less than one percent of tenders conducted by the Government of Ghana are international competitive tenders. Further, Ghanaian law stipulates that purchases below a certain threshold are reserved for local companies. (Note: Ghana is not a party or observer to the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA)).
Exceptions to National Competitive Tendering: Even in terms of national competitive tendering, the Amendment Act has two key exceptions. The first is that the Minister of Finance can direct the use of a less competitive procurement procedure (restrictive tendering, request quotations, and sole sourcing) when the Minister determines that it is in the national interest and he/she provides a justification to do so. Second, a less competitive procurement procedure can be used if the goods, works, or services are financed by loans or aid granted under an international agreement that stipulates another method of procurement. In effect, many tenders in Ghana are awarded on a sole-source basis. Therefore, companies interested in participating in public procurements are encouraged to partner with local firms that have been given the mandate to develop specific projects.
Margins of Preference for Local Goods and Services: Goods that meet the local content requirements listed here can benefit from a 15-20 % margin of preference in both national competitive tenders and international competitive tenders. Transparency and Finding Legitimate Tenders: To promote transparency, the Act requires that requests for tenders must be published in the Public Procurement Bulletin and on the Public Procurement Authority’s (PPA) website (https://ppa.gov.gh/). The invitation to tender or pre-qualify must also be published in at least one daily newspaper with national circulation.
A procurement entity may opt to publish the invitation in an international newspaper or relevant international trade publication or technical or professional journal. The PPA has also introduced the Ghana Electronic Procurement System or GHANEPS (https://www.ghaneps.gov.gh/). This online portal displays all open government tenders that are subject to bidding. Companies seeking opportunities should complete an online registration on the portal which will allow them to receive notification of all government tenders.
Bid Criteria and Appeals: The criteria for a successful bid is also set out in the Public Procurement Act. Among other provisions, it states that the contracting authority shall make an award to the bidder with the lowest evaluated price. This notwithstanding, there is the requirement of the procurement entity to determine if a bidder has quoted an abnormally low price. There are provisions for addressing that circumstance. The procuring entity must inform all unsuccessful bidders in writing on the outcome of the award. There are specific appeal procedures that bidders can follow if they believe that there has been a violation of the law, which can result in the cancelation of the bid, compensation for reasonable costs incurred, and damages for losses suffered.
Procurement as Primary Area of International Fraud: Individuals claiming to be procurement agents in Ghana have led various scams targeting U.S. and other international companies, especially advance fee fraud scams. U.S. companies receiving unsolicited requests for tenders in Ghana must exercise caution and are advised to conduct due diligence using the GHANEPS platform to determine the tender’s legitimacy. In 2024, CS Ghana identified 16 different fraudulent entities that are actively seeking to scam U.S. companies. The Government of Ghana has confirmed that these are fraudulent entities. This is not an exclusive list, as new fake entities appear all of the time. Many mimic Government and international organization procurement websites. Please see our most recent scam guidance here.
Note: Although a local partner can be of great assistance when entering the market, the U.S. Commercial Service Ghana highly recommends that due diligence be performed on any new potential partner prior to entering into any type of business arrangement with a U.S. company.
U.S. companies bidding on foreign government tenders may also qualify for U.S. Government advocacy. Within the U.S. Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration, the Advocacy Center coordinates U.S. Government interagency advocacy efforts on behalf of U.S. exporters in competition with foreign firms in foreign government projects or procurement opportunities. The Advocacy Center works closely with our network of the U.S. Commercial Service worldwide and inter-agency partners to ensure that exporters of U.S. products and services have the best possible chance of winning government contracts. Advocacy assistance can take many forms but often involves the U.S. Embassy or other U.S. Government agency officials expressing support for the U.S. exporters directly to the foreign government. Consult the Advocacy Center’s program web page on trade.gov for additional information.
Ghana Electronic Procurement System: As a means of introducing transparency in the process of public procurement, the country has introduced the Ghana Electronic Procurement System or GHANEPS. It is an online portal that displays all government tenders for interested parties to bid. Companies seeking opportunities are to complete an online registration on the said portal to enable them receive notification of all government tenders.
However, due to the high level of scams associated with this process, companies should contact Office.Accra@trade.gov before proceeding on such tenders, especially when they are asked to pay any advanced fees, or any other money related to such tenders.
Financing Projects
In Ghana, external sources such as multilateral development banks, international development finance institutions, private equity funds, international commercial banks, and export credit agencies often finance large projects. Ghanaian government or private partners may also ask the foreign company and/or their government to finance the project. Local banks also can help to finance large-scale projects, but interest rates remain quite high. Sovereign and partial risk guarantees may be possible.
Multilateral Development Banks and Financing Government Sales
Price, payment terms, and financing can be a significant factor in winning a government contract. Many governments finance public works projects through borrowing from the Multilateral Development Banks (MDB). A helpful guide for working with the MDBs is the Trade Finance Guide.
Successful companies usually have a “ground game” in the country where the project will be implemented. This often includes relationships with implementing ministries and local MDB officials, local partners, or local presence. Companies need to be able to evaluate opportunities as they know their capabilities, bandwidth, and risk tolerance. Companies are most successful in projects in markets where they already have relevant experience and are willing to put in the time; project development can take one to three years.
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s (USDOC) International Trade Administration (ITA) has a Foreign Commercial Service Officer assigned to each of the five different Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs): the African Development Bank; the Asian Development Bank; the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development; the Inter-American Development Bank; and the World Bank. The U.S. Commercial Service’s Commercial Liaison Office to the African Development Bank is located in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. See the Commercial Services’ African Development Bank resources and contact Elvire Kodio at Elvire.Kodio@trade.gov; Telephone: + 225 05 54 001 241. Connect with our Commercial Liaison Offices to the World Bank and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development or EBRD. (The EBRD seeks to start lending in Ghana primarily on private sector projects.)