PODCAST · news
The Fourth Estate
by The Fourth Estate
The Fourth Estate Podcast takes you beyond the headlines of Ghana’s most impactful investigative journalism. Produced by The Fourth Estate, a non-profit public interest project of the Media Foundation for West Africa, the podcast opens up the reporting that has triggered investigations, prosecutions and difficult national conversations about power, accountability and justice. With a strong focus on corruption, governance, the environment, health and human rights, each episode deepens public understanding of issues that directly affect people’s lives. This is where listeners hear the full story. We go behind the scenes with the journalists who broke major investigations, speak to sources who entrusted us with their experiences, and revisit stories that continue to shape public policy and democratic accountability in Ghana. The Fourth Estate Podcast offers a new way to engage with rigorous, independent journalism, thoughtfully reporte
Episodes
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No trace of World Bank-funded boreholes in three Yendi communities
Ten communities in Yendi in the Northern Region were selected in 2022 to receive mechanised boreholes under a World Bank-funded project. Project records indicate that boreholes were drilled in all ten communities. But an investigation by The Fourth Estate found no evidence of the facilities in...
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Inside the Property Rate Deal That Cost Assemblies Millions
In 2023, the Akufo Addo administration introduced a digital platform to centralise property rate collection, promising to modernise the system and boost local revenue. But an investigation by The Fourth Estate revealed that instead of solving the problem, the digital platform led to a sharp…
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After spending billions on streetlighting, why are Ghana’s streets still dark?
Most of Ghana’s major roads and streets are persistently dark at night. This is despite the fact that Ghanaians pay a 3 percent energy levy on their electricity bills. Investigations by The Fourth Estate found that, the Energy Ministry between 2023 and 2025 awarded street lighting contracts worth...
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The Fourth Estate launches membership drive to support public interest journalism
From September 2026, The Fourth Estate is inviting its readers to become stakeholders in a new membership model that keeps its public interest journalism going while giving supporters a stake in the mission. In this episode of the podcast, we sit down with Sulemana Braimah, Executive Director of...
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Mathematical Mix-up or Deliberate Duplication? Why the Presidency’s Big Push report doesn’t add up
The Fourth Estate’s investigations into the Mahama administration’s flagship construction project, The Big Push, generated a lot of public debate about the use and abuse of sole source procurement in the award of public contracts. In May 2026, in response to The Fourth Estate’s investigation, the...
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Inside the NGIJ Fellowship: The Future of Investigative Journalism
To equip young journalists with critical, in-depth reporting skills, The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) five years ago, launched the Next Generation Investigative Journalists (NGIJ) fellowship. In this episode, we take a look at the journey of the NGIJ fellowship since its inception. We...
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Dead or alive: How non-payment of allowances is threatening the push to keep Ghana clean
When the local government ministry started the sanitation guards initiative in 2007, the goal was clear - to help make Ghana cleaner. But as laudable as the idea is, a lot of the guards who have been recruited over the years have dropped out of the program managed by Zoomlion and many are...
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Why Ghana's Asset Declaration law is not fighting graft as intended
Article 286 of the 1992 constitution of Ghana requires public office holders to declare their assets and liabilities before they assume office. They are also required to do same at the end of every four years and at the end of their term of office. But enforcing this has been a challenge for...
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'Medical Kalabule' probe: What the Committee missed
Shortly after the Fourth Estate released its documentary 'Medical Kalabule', the Health Minister formed a committee to investigate allegations made in the documentary. The committee's report indicted only one of the medical professionals named in the documentary for overcharging patients for...
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Sole-Sourcing for Big Push: The Gulf Between Promise and Delivery
Right at the start of his second term in office, President John Mahama pledged to eliminate sole-sourcing, suggesting a push for new legislation to end the practice of awarding public contracts without competitive bidding. It was a bold promise, framed as part of a broader effort to improve...
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Joojo Cobbinah and Edmund Boateng on investigating suspected killings in Ghana's Police custody
Typically, when someone dies under mysterious circumstances, the police launch an investigation to ascertain if it was a murder or accidental. But what happens when a person dies under questionable circumstances while in police detention? For the documentary Death in Detention: Suspected Killings...
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Death in Detention: Suspected Killings in Ghana's Police Custody
Investigations by The Fourth Estate revealed that over a five-year period, at least 19 people died while being detained by the Ghana Police Service. Four of those deaths, according to the police, were suicides. But families of the deceased suspects have rejected the claims. In the first of our...
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Joojo Cobbinah on investigating 'Medical Kalabule'
When the documentary, Medical Kalabule, was released earlier this month, it exposed the desperation and lengths some critically ill patients and their families were willing to go for care. While a committee set up by the Ministry of Health investigates the issues raised in the documentary, we go...
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Medical Kalabule: Doctors preying on helpless patients in Ghanaian hospitals
Some doctors in Ghana entrusted with saving lives have instead been preying on patients in desperate need of urgent, life-saving surgeries. In a health system already stretched by staff shortages, limited infrastructure and chronic equipment gaps, some surgeons have found a way to turn crisis…
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The thinking behind Ghana’s most innovative and impactful investigative newsroom
In just about five short years, The Fourth Estate has produced investigations that have dominated national conversations and triggered real-world consequences, from prosecutions to policy reviews. But how did this project begin, and why does it work so differently from conventional newsrooms? In...
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Introducing The Fourth Estate Podcast
The Fourth Estate Podcast takes Ghana’s most impactful investigations beyond the written page. In just a few years, The Fourth Estate has broken stories that sparked official investigations, triggered prosecutions and forced hard national conversations about power, accountability and justice.…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
The Fourth Estate Podcast takes you beyond the headlines of Ghana’s most impactful investigative journalism.
Produced by The Fourth Estate, a non-profit public interest project of the Media Foundation for West Africa, the podcast opens up the reporting that has triggered investigations, prosecutions and difficult national conversations about power, accountability and justice. With a strong focus on corruption, governance, the environment, health and human rights, each episode deepens public understanding of issues that directly affect people’s lives.
This is where listeners hear the full story. We go behind the scenes with the journalists who broke major investigations, speak to sources who entrusted us with their experiences, and revisit stories that continue to shape public policy and democratic accountability in Ghana.
The Fourth Estate Podcast offers a new way to engage with rigorous, independent journalism, thoughtfully reporte
HOSTED BY
The Fourth Estate
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The Fourth Estate have?
The Fourth Estate currently has 16 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The Fourth Estate about?
The Fourth Estate Podcast takes you beyond the headlines of Ghana’s most impactful investigative journalism. Produced by The Fourth Estate, a non-profit public interest project of the Media Foundation for West Africa, the podcast opens up the reporting that has triggered investigations,...
How often does The Fourth Estate release new episodes?
The Fourth Estate has 16 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to The Fourth Estate?
You can listen to The Fourth Estate on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The Fourth Estate?
The Fourth Estate is created and hosted by The Fourth Estate.
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