At a Press Conference held at the Hotel Almadies in Dakar on Monday, May 11 2009, the ThinkTank Initiative announced that 24 policy Think Tanks in eastern and western Africa had been selected as the first cohort to receive core grants from the Initiative. The ThinkTank Initiative is supported by the International Development Research Council of Canada, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER) of the University of Ghana was one of the 24 institutions selected from 11 countries for the grant. In making the announcement it was pointed out that the competition for the grants was very keen as over 300 institutions submitted applications

A core grant is basically a cash transfer to a recipient institution to be used for purposes to be determined by the recipient institution within a generally agreed framework. The Initiative found it necessary to provide a core grant to the 24 institutions in Africa with the understanding that it would assist them to undertake their basic functions of policy research and dissemination/advocacy more effectively. It has for long been recognised that policy making in Africa is based on very little research, and research institutions have to struggle with very limited resources to pursue their mandate. In many African countries policy research institutions undertake research that has little bearing on the immediate development policy requirements. They depend on sporadic funding that is earmarked for projects that may not be immediately relevant for policy making. It is expected that the receipt of a core grant over a long period will allow the institutions to develop their own relevant research programmes, driven by the needs of their own policy environments.

ISSER was one of two Ghanaian institutions selected for the core grant, and also one of the only two university-based recipient institutions. Altogether ISSER received one of the largest grants and was highly commended for the quality of its work and for its management. The core grant will be utilised in three general areas: strengthening research programme; enhancing organisational performance; and improving dissemination and advocacy.

ISSER receives this core grant in the same year that it is celebrating the 40th anniversary of its creation by the University of Ghana. It was created in 1969 after a transformation of an earlier Institute of Statistics that was set up by the UNDP in 1962 to train middle level statistics personnel for the public sector. Since its inception ISSER has focused on research that is essential for developing appropriate economic and social development policies.

Programme of Activities for ISSER 40th Anniversary


12th June 2009:    Visit of Minister Armin Laschet, Ministry of Home Affairs, North-Rhine Westphalia, Germany

16th June 2009:    Launch of “Centre of Excellence in Development Studies Programme”

22nd July 2009        Launch of “State of the Ghanaian Economy Report 2008” and Mid- Year Review of Economic Performance in 2009:

13th August 2009    International Round Table on “Managing A New Oil Economy” Launch of ISSER-FES Development Seminar Series

27th August 2009     First ISSER-FES Development Seminar to be followed by monthly seminars for one year.

24th – 25th November 2009    International Conference on Sustainable Growth

18th December 2009    Open Day at ISSER and Dinner