By: Franklin ASARE-DONKOR
Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has hinted that the government is still looking through its portfolio of measures meant to cushion Ghanaians against the current economic difficulties brought on by the “COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war”.
According to the Information Minister, the government has not lost sight of the challenges and will continue to adopt plans to mitigate the impact.
In March 2022, a Cabinet retreat that discussed extensively, the impact of global economic difficulties on Ghana and the Ghanaian people approved some measures which were outlined by the Finance Minister.
But three months down the line, the Minister responsible for Information says an assessment of the measures is ongoing, and the recommendations made thereof will soon be announced during the Mid-year review by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.
The Information Minister announced that the assessment will be done through a series of engagements with key sector players within the Ghanaian economy to assess the impact of the economic mitigation measures.
The exercise, he noted, is expected to enable the government examine what more can be done to support Ghanaians.
“First of all, these measures that were introduced are being assessed. There will be recommendations. The issue of food price increases is a specific matter within this assessment that the President is very interested in, in ensuring that we halt, if not plough back, as quickly as possible. That will also find its expression in the list of recommendations,” the Minister made this known on an Accra-based radio station on Monday.
Senior Advisor to the President, Mr. Yaw Osafo-Maafo is expected to chair the engagements and report to the cabinet by Thursday, June 30, 2022.
Ministers expected to participate include Minister for Agric, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, Minister for Transport, Kwaku Ofori Asiamah, Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Daniel Botwe, Caretaker Minister for Gender, Cecilia Abena Dapaah, Minister for Trade, Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen and Minister for Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah.
“All these recommendations will be put on the table when those who manage fiscal policies come to the table for the mid-year review because whatever measures that need to be adjusted will have some fiscal implications.”
“This is all that will translate into what the finance minister will bring to Parliament when he reviews the economic policy and budget. If there is a need to have a supplementary (intervention), then we will have a conversation about that. So the next three weeks is a critical window for us”, Mr. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah added.
