Organisational communication in subvented organisations in Ghana, a study of the national commission for civic education

Abstract

This study investigated the organisational communication of subvented organisations in Ghana focusing on the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE). It specifically sought to identify the policy framework guiding NCCE‘s communication practices, the communication practices employed by NCCE and the ramifications implied in the communication structure of NCCE. The objectives of the study were to understand the communication practices of NCCE and how those communication practices influence the work of the Commission. The study was guided by the Media Richness Theory and Barnlund‘s Transactional Model of Communication (1970). It employed a case study design within a qualitative research approach, with data sourced from semi-structured interviews and documents. The interview data came from purposively selected key NCCE staff of the departments of Corporate and Communication Affairs, Programmes, and Human Resource. Expert opinions were also sought through semi-structured interviews from academia and the Electoral Commission of Ghana. The documents analysed also involved communication-related productions of the Commission. The analysis discovered that, although communication is vitally important for the effective performance of NCCE‘s constitutionally and socially mandated civic education functions, the Commission operates without a codified and/or published communication policy. Yet such a document is necessary to regulate and assess its communication and educative functions. Instead, the Commission‘s communication thrives on established conventions and ad hoc measures as and when needed. The significant implication of the findings was that NCCE‘s communication could be haphazardly organised, making the Commission appear not serious and laidback with its communication. The study therefore suggested the need for the Commission to develop a proactive communication policy to serve as a road map for its civic education activities. Nevertheless, the study revealed that NCCE‘s internal and external communication practices appeared to reflect modern corporate communication trends. Though the study explored the communication structure of one public organisation, insights generated could illuminate broader organisational communication dynamics, especially in non-profit public organisations in Ghana.