"They are my people, add them!" The politicisation of poverty reduction programmes in the Global South: Ghana's Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty cash transfer programme in focus

Numerous impact assessments have shown that Ghana's cash transfer programme, the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP), has contributed to poverty alleviation and improved schooling. Although the LEAP programme has been extensively evaluated, its political dimensions have been under-researched. Within this context, the present article aimed at understanding the pathways of politicising the LEAP programme. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with 25 LEAP beneficiaries and 5 programme officers, the data demonstrates how the political actors abuse the targeting system by prioritising "their people" at the expense of other beneficiaries in five districts of northern Ghana. De nombreuses etudes d'impact ont demonte que le programme de transferts monetaires du Ghana, le Programme de revenu de subsistance contre la pauvrete (LEAP), a contribue a attenuer la pauvrete et a ameliorer la scolarisation des enfants. Bien que le programme LEAP ait ete etudie de maniere extensive, ses dimensions politiques n'ont pas encore fait l'objet d'une analyse aussi poussee. Dans ce contexte, notre article a pour but d'etudier les differentes voies de politisation du programme LEAP. Nous basons notre analyse sur des entretiens semi-directifs avec 25 beneficiaires et 5 administrateurs du programme LEAP. Nos resultats demontrent la maniere dont les acteurs politiques abusent du systeme de ciblage du programme afin de donner la priorite a & DLANGBRAC; leurs gens & drangbrac;, au detriment d'autres beneficiaires dans les cinq districts du nord du Ghana.