Northern Patriots in Research and Advocacy (NORPRA), has called on the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon to immediately remove Ghana’s President, John Dramani Mahama from the position of co-chair of Eminent Advocates for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for his lack of practical commitment to eradicating poverty and inequality in his own country.
In a press release, the civil society organization noted that President Mahama has not only been leading a country that records continuous decline in the growth rate of the agricultural sector but also failing woefully to equitably allocate state resources to undertake certain initiatives and programs to transform the lives of people in areas known to be the poorest of the poor and vulnerable in Ghana.
It acknowledged that Ghana has prospects in promoting sustainable agriculture, achieve food security and end poverty and hunger but mentioned that wrong policy decisions and misplaced priorities that shape and inform how resources are allocated largely account for the country’s failure to dramatically improve the lives of the people through improved agriculture, adding that a notable case is the wrong decision by government expenditure on the agricultural sector by Ghc40 million in 2016.
The statement further bemoaned the failure of government to make substantial investment in the northern savannah ecological zone that has very huge potentials for agricultural-led transformation of the Ghanaian economy for improved macroeconomic stability and eradication of poverty.
It called on the International community to dismiss President Mahama from his international position as co-chair of Eminent Advocates for the World’s Sustainable Development Goals because he has not demonstrated sufficient commitment to ending poverty and inequality in his own backyard.
Below is the full statement
A CALL ON UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY -GENERAL TO RELIEVE PRESIDENT JOHN MAHAMA OF HIS POST AS CO-CHAIR OF EMINENT ADVOCATES FOR THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Northern Patriots in Research and Advocacy (NORPRA) is calling on the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon to immediately remove Ghana’s President, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama from the position of co-chair of Eminent Advocates for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for his lack of practical commitment to eradicating poverty and inequality in his own country.
It is important to remind Ghanaians and the whole world that Ending Poverty and Hunger in all forms everywhere, Achieving food security, Promoting sustainable agriculture and Reducing inequality within and among countries are some of the 17 Global Goals that make up the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The sitting President of Ghana who has been assigned an additional global task to offer quality leadership in advocating for the world to achieve these SDGs has not only been leading a country that records continuous decline in the growth rate of the agricultural sector but also failing woefully to equitably allocate state resources to undertake certain pro-poor initiatives and programmes to transform the lives of people in areas known to be the poorest of the poor and vulnerable in Ghana.
The fact is, Ghana has what it takes to promote sustainable agriculture, achieve food security and end poverty and hunger but wrong policy decisions and misplaced priorities that shape and inform how resources are allocated largely account for the country’s failure to dramatically improve the lives of the people through improved agriculture. One notable case of these wrong decisions is the cut in government’s 2016 expenditure on the agricultural sector by Ghc40 million.
Another point worth noting is the failure of government to make substantial investment in the northern savannah ecological zone that has very huge potentials for agricultural-led transformation of the Ghanaian economy for improved macroeconomic stability and eradication of poverty.
Once the Ghanaian President has not demonstrated sufficient commitment to ending poverty and inequality in his own backyard, NORPRA sees no moral justification for the President to continue to hold himself as co-chair of Eminent Advocates for the World’s Sustainable Development Goals.
It is for these reasons that NORPRA is urging leaders of the international community to dismiss President Mahama from his international job.
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Bismark Adongo Ayorogo
Executive Director of NORPRA
0209313630
By: Ngamegbulam Chidozie | A1RADIOONLINE.com | GHANA
