Policy think tank IMANI Africa has published its September 2026 report on Ghana's online political conversation, revealing that economic hardship remains a persistent source of concern among Ghanaians. The report, which tracked online discussions across various platforms, including Facebook, X, YouTube, and TikTok, found that the cost of living, debt, and fuel were major areas of concern. The report also noted that President John Dramani Mahama remained the dominant political figure, but his near-neutral sentiment score indicates that visibility should not be mistaken for approval or disapproval.
According to IMANI Africa, President Mahama dominated the online conversation, accounting for 2,745 of 4,838 figure-tagged readings, or 57% of all mentions. His tone was almost exactly balanced, with 1,360 positive mentions and 1,125 negative ones, resulting in a mean sentiment score of -0.01. In contrast, Afenyo-Markin had the most negative sentiment, with 66% of his 454 mentions being negative. The report also found that Mahama's conversation was the most policy-focused, with 73% of his classified mentions concerning policy, programmes, budgets, or governance.
The report identified illegal mining (Galamsey) as the month's loudest and most negative issue, with 2,647 mentions, 94% of which were negative. Narcotics-related controversies also generated significant attention, with 1,344 mentions, 89% of which were negative. The report noted that the conversation around the economy was mixed, with currency and fuel leading the volume of mentions. However, cost of living, debt, and fuel carried the most negative tone.
IMANI Africa's report also highlighted the contrast between volume and sentiment in the online conversation. While President Mahama was the most discussed political figure, his sentiment score was effectively neutral. The report noted that the scale of his visibility did not translate into strongly positive or negative sentiment. The visual distribution of political figures reinforces Mahama's dominance, with his bar being substantially larger than those of every other tracked figure.
The report also analyzed the conversation around specific issues, including the Big Push infrastructure programme, which ran net positive (+0.28). In contrast, mentions of the cedi were mixed, with 454 positive and 610 negative mentions. The report noted that the month's conversation was particularly notable for the contrast between volume and sentiment.
IMANI Africa's PULSE framework is designed to assess public sentiment across digital and media ecosystems regarding major political contenders. The analysis draws on data and content from various platforms, including Facebook, X, YouTube, and TikTok. The report provides evidence that substantive political discussion has not disappeared, with Mahama's 73% Substance Index and Ato Forson's 65% indicating that policy-oriented conversation can still generate meaningful engagement and favourable sentiment.
The report concluded that the central challenge is not simply to ask whether Ghana's online political conversation is positive or negative, but to ask what is driving the sentiment, whether citizens are debating policies or personalities, and whether moments of intense political attention are translating into meaningful conversations about governance and public outcomes. The report suggests that controversy remains one of the strongest engines of online political attention, but policy continues to shape the conversation beneath it.
Key points
- Economic hardship remains a persistent source of concern among Ghanaians, particularly around cost of living, debt, and fuel.
- President John Dramani Mahama remained the dominant political figure, but his near-neutral sentiment score indicates that visibility should not be mistaken for approval or disapproval.
- The report provides evidence that substantive political discussion has not disappeared, with policy-oriented conversation still generating meaningful engagement and favourable sentiment.
