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2023 Budget doesn’t deal with current economic concerns immediately – Paul Danka

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John Paul Danka, a member of the NDC’s Upper East Regional Communication Team is worried that in the short term, Ghanaians would continue to face severe economic hardship. Mr. Danka, speaking on A1 Radio’s Day Break Upper East Show admitted that while the 2023 Budget Statement and Financial Policy contained some critical strategies to help manage the situation and help build the economy, within the short term, no concrete measures have been stated. 

This would mean that all the challenges, in the short term, would abound. 

“I was thinking that considering the fact that we are in a crisis, what might have happened during the mid-year budget review until the very moment, we should have been getting a crisis budget. A budget with a smaller incubation period and can survive the budget lifecycle of a year. Here’s the case, this is a normal budget. Nothing there suggests that we are cutting the gestation period of our policies. Is there one budget policy that would not outlive the budget lifecycle?”

Using YouStart as an example, he asked, “when would one go and apply, queue, go for an interview and get that money to come and set up [a processing factory] to feed into the system quickly? It doesn’t work that way,” he said. 

According to the 2023 Budget Statement and Economic Policy, the government hopes to implement measures to boost local production, substitute exports and restructure the economy. 

“To boost local productive capacity, we will among others: cut the imports of public sector institutions that rely on imports either for inputs or consumption by 50% and will work with the Ghana Audit Service and the Internal Audit Agency to ensure compliance; support the aggressive production of strategic substitutes, including the list disclosed at the President’s last address to the nation; Support large-scale agriculture and agribusinesses interventions through the Development Bank Ghana and ADB Bank; introduce policies for the protection and incubation newly formed domestic industries to allow them to make the goods produced here competitive for local consumption and also for exports. To promote exports, we will among others: expand our productive capacity in the real sector of the economy and actively encourage the consumption of locally produced rice, poultry, vegetable oil and fruit juices, ceramic tiles among others.”

Meanwhile, Andrew Atariwini, a member of the NPP’s Upper East Regional Communication Team is touting the positives of the 2023 Budget Statement and Financial Policy. When Mr. Atariwini spoke on A1 Radio’s Day Break Upper East Show today, Monday, November 28, 2022, he was optimistic that the budget would allow the private sector to thrive and create more employment opportunities. This, he said, would offset the government decision to freeze the hiring of public and government workers for the year 2023. 

The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta announced a ban on employment for civil servants effective January 2023.

Presenting the 2023 Budget and Economic Policy to Parliament on Thursday, Mr. Ofori Atta also announced that the purchase of new vehicles shall be restricted to locally assembled vehicles while the allocation of fuel coupons to political appointees and heads of MDAs, MMDAs and SOEs have been reduced by 50%.

Source: A1radioonline.com|101.1MHz|Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Ghana

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