Republic Of Ghana

THE BUDGET STATEMENT

AND

ECONOMIC POLICY

Of the

GOVERNMENT OF GHANA

For the

2001 FINANCIAL YEAR

presented to

Parliament

on

Friday, 9th March 2001

By

HON. YAW OSAFO - MAAFO

Minister of Finance

On the authority of

HIS EXCELLENCY JOHN AGYEKUM KUFUOR

President of the Republic of Ghana

TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION ONE: INTRODUCTION
SECTION TWO: ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE IN 2000
GDP - OVERALL GROWTH
CONSUMER PRICE DEVELOPMENTS
FISCAL DEVELOPMENTS
BALANCE OF PAYMENTS DEVELOPMENTS
EXCHANGE RATE
MONETARY DEVELOPMENTS
GHANA'S DEBT
SECTION THREE: REVIEW OF EXPENDITURES AND
PERFORMANCE OF SECTORS IN 2000
ADMINISTRATION SECTOR
ECONOMIC SERVICES SECTOR
INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES SECTOR
SOCIAL SERVICES SECTOR
PUBLIC SAFETY SECTOR
POVERTY REDUCTION
SECTION FOUR: MACROECONOMIC PROGRAMME FOR 2001
THE BUDGET AND FINANCIAL PROGRAMME FOR YEAR 2001
RESOURCE ALLOCATION FOR 2001
BALANCE OF PAYMENTS OUTLOOK
MONETARY OUTLOOK FOR 2001
GHANA'S DEBT OUTLOOK
SECTION FIVE:SECTORAL RESOURCE ALLOCATION FOR YEAR 2001
ADMINISTRATION SECTOR
ECONOMIC SERVICES SECTOR
INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES SECTOR
SOCIAL SERVICES SECTOR
PUBLIC SAFETY SECTOR
SECTION SIX: POLICY INITIATIVES FOR 2001
PUBLIC FINANCE MANAGEMENT
DIVESTITURE AND THE DIVESTITURE
IMPLEMENTATION COMMITTEE (DIC)
FINANCE AND MANAGEMENT AUDIT
TAX RELIEFS
REVISION OF CORPORATE TAX RATES
POVERTY REDUCTION
LOAN RECOVERY
ENCOURAGING PRIVATE SAVINGS
HALT ON CONTRACT APPOINTMENTS
PROJECT EXECUTION
GOVERNMENT ACQUIRED LANDS
THE GHANA AIDS COMMISSION
PRIVATE SECTOR POLICIES
SMALL BUSINESS SERVICES
SPECIAL INCENTIVE FOR VALUE ADDED PROCESSING
OF COCOA AND GOLD
REVENUE ENHANCING MEASURES
REVENUE AGENCIES (GOVERNING) BOARD
STREAMLINING PROCEDURES FOR CLEARING GOODS
FROM THE PORTS
IMPOSITION OF VAT ON IMPORTED PHARMACEUTICAL
PRODUCTS
REVIEW OF FEES AND CHARGES
APPOINTMENT OF A GAMES COMMISSIONER
REVIEW OF TAX SYSTEM
WIDENING OF TAX BASE
AIRPORT TAX
ESTABLISHMENT OF TAX COURTS
TAXES ON PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
DIVIDEND PAYMENT
EXEMPTIONS
IMPORT DUTY ON MATERIALS FOR THE MANUFACTURE, PROCESSING OF OR PROSPECTING FOR TIMBER AND
NATURAL PRODUCTS
OTHER REVENUE ENHANCING MEASURES
PUBLIC PROCUREMENT REFORM
FINANCIAL SECTOR
OVER-AGED VEHICLES
NATIONAL RECONSTRUCTION LEVY (NRL)
COCOA INDUSTRY
BONUS PAYMENTS TO FARMERS
MASS SPRAYING OF COCOA FARMS
IMPROVEMENT WORKS ON SELECTED COCOA ROADS
SECTION SEVEN: CONCLUSION
SECTION EIGHT: APPENDIX TABLES

SECTION ONE: INTRODUCTION

1. Mr. Speaker, I beg to move that this House approves the Budget for the year 2001.

2. Mr. Speaker, I deem it a great personal honour that His Excellency President John
Agyekum Kufuor, has entrusted me with the privilege of presenting this historic first
Budget and Economic Policy Statement of the President, and of the new administration of the
New Patriotic Party. This landmark Budget provides us with an opportunity to lay the
foundation for re-launching macro-economic stability, and creating a viable and
sustainable environment that will signal to the business community that Ghana is ready to do
business with the world.

3. Mr. Speaker, His Excellency the President, in both his Inaugural and Sessional addresses,
promised that his government envisions establishing a new Golden Age for the private
sector. The government of the New Patriotic Party which traces its political lineage to the
liberal democratic tenets of the Danquah-Busia tradition, has, over the past half century,
anchored its political and economic vision on respect for human rights and the operation of a
liberal and market-based economy. The NPP, therefore, envisages an economy where the
production and distribution of goods and services will be principally the business of
the private sector. This new production arrangement will be anchored on a new robust
collaborative partnership between a focused but strong public sector and a vibrant private
sector. This is the only way we can ensure the realization of the Golden Age for the Private
sector in this era of Globalisation, and the new rules-based international trading system
under the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

4. The 2001 Budget aims at laying the foundation for a robust economic growth with
the private sector as the main agent for wealth creation. His Excellency the President,
envisions the private sector as the principal source of economic growth, the generator of
employment opportunities, and the creator of the resources wherewithal for social progress.

5. Mr. Speaker, in order to lay a solid foundation for the economy, all Ghanaians must
be prepared to make some sacrifices. This Budget is also testimony of our determination
as a people to make the necessary sacrifices in order to build a national economy that can and
will perform at a higher level of international competitiveness. The business community is
being invited to make special contribution so that we can address the structural imbalance in
public finances that has led to the crowding out of the private sector from the available
commercial credit and denied them access to affordable credit for productive investment.

6. The crux of our economic difficulties is that our expenditures are more than our revenue
with debt service being our single largest expenditure item. Personnel expenditures and
debt service alone eat up about 75% of our revenue. Huge foreign and domestic debts stare
us in the face. This means we have very limited financial wiggle room. But we have to cut our
coat according to the size of our cloth. The medicine that will restore health to our ailing
economy requires that we reduce expenditures and increase revenues. We have introduced
various measures in this budget to achieve these. This we must do.

7. We have initiated many revenue enhancing measures to improve drastically the revenue
from CEPS, IRS, the VAT Service and the Department of National Lotteries and we expect
the management and staff of these revenue agencies to respond promptly and positively.

8. As you are aware, Mr. Speaker, the situation we inherited was a fragile economy,
which manifests itself in excessive domestic and external debt, high inflation, weak
currency, excess liquidity in the system and high unemployment. Mr. Speaker, according to
the Central Bank, at the beginning of the fourth quarter of year 2000, the Central
Government account with Bank of Ghana showed an overdrawn position of 3.0 billion and by the
end of December 2000, the overdrawn position was about 900 billion. We must fight inflation
at all fronts.

9. Mr. Speaker, the political centrality of our concern for the plight of the average
worker, is also demonstrated in this Budget. As I said earlier, sacrifices are necessary while
we are grappling to get a handle on the actual order of magnitude of the economic crisis
within which we find ourselves. We have frozen all government expenditures, with the exception
of wages and salaries and their related items, at the level of the year 2000 outlays. We
intend to come to our colleagues in this august house after June 2001, when we expect to have a
better appreciation of the finances and obligations of the state, so that together we
can undertake a review of the Budget and bring it to more realistic levels. This budget must
therefore be viewed by the House and our development partners as an interim budget.

10. In spite of the sacrifices being demanded of all sections of our society, we have deemed
it imperative to come up with a package for creating employment opportunities for the
youth. The package combines employment activities that are productivity enhancing and
also aims at improving the environment and restoring our natural resource heritage. Mr.
Speaker, the projects involve the mass spraying of our cocoa farms in collaboration with the
Ghana Cocoa, Coffee and Sheanut Farmers Association, and the re-afforestation of our
fast depleting forests.

11. Mr. Speaker, the high cost environment in which the private sector has operated for so
long will be transformed into a competitive and attractive arena for doing business. His
Excellency President John Agyekum Kufuor has promised a government of "zero-tolerance" for
corruption of all types; be it of grand or petty dimension, by high level or low level
functionaries, in the private or public sector domain. We intend to reduce the cost of doing
business in Ghana in order to make our country an attractive destination for foreign
investment, both direct and portfolio investment through the Ghana Stock Exchange.

12. Mr. Speaker, the new administration has inherited economic and financial crises of
serious dimensions. The actual order of magnitude still eludes us. There is a critical
lack of adequate and reliable data on the state of the national economy. Public finances are in
chaos. Over the past two years, the NDC government failed systematically to meet
performance benchmarks and policy requirements agreed upon as conditions for collaboration
with our international development partners. In order for the NPP administration to put
together a realistic action programme for attaining the national quest to re-establish
macro-economic stability and re-establish credible and sustainable policy framework for
co-operation and development, it is imperative that we be given room to operate. We need to
use the first six months of our administration to get a handle on the problem. This we intend
to do by undertaking an in depth strategic audit investigation into the actual state of
our finances, in order to form a realistic assessment of where we are and where we have
been. This strategic audit will help us ascertain the broad orders of magnitude of the
state of public finances, review the existing development strategies and policies, so that we
can forge a strategy for the way forward.

13. The strategic audit, which is underway, is to facilitate our efforts at coming up with an
action framework that can form the basis for establishing a transparent and sustainable
policy framework for growth and reduction of poverty in a stable economic environment. In
this effort, we will need the cooperation and support of our international development
partners. Of strategic importance is the inflow of foreign direct investment to support the
Ghanaian private sector in joint ventures to make the private sector a genuine engine of
growth for the national economy.

14. Mr. Speaker, we intend to design our own strategy for growth and then invite our
development partners to buy into our vision, and help us realize our goals. Development
policies cannot and should not become ends in themselves. Policies are only the means for
attaining the good life for our people.

15. Mr. Speaker, the challenges facing the country are daunting. But there is an air of
liberation and a new sense of hope and urgency to address the problem of fighting poverty. The
fight is principally the responsibility of Ghanaians. Others can only supplement our
effort and sacrifice. Mr. Speaker this is the challenge the new government of His Excellency
President John Agyekum Kufour, and of the NPP have started addressing with this first budget
of the year 2001.

16. The aim will be, in the long-run to make the economy solid and credit worthy, make
businesses flourish and able to employ and sustain labour, bring our education back to its
former glory with students attaining heights that used to make Ghanaian schools the envy of
the continent and indeed the whole world.

17. Mr. Speaker, today we are sounding the clarion call to all Ghanaians in public and
private sectors, to be ready to put our house together and in order. It is also a clarion
call to the business world that Ghana is ready to do business in full transparency in the
internationally competitive era of globalisation.

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SECTION TWO: ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE IN 2000

18. The year 2000 was a difficult year for our economy as internal and external problems
culminated in a resurgence of domestic inflation, steep and an unprecedented
depreciation of the Cedi against the major currencies and weak macroeconomic fundamentals.
In addition, Government's projected inflows of project grants turned out to be too optimistic.
Provisional figures show that the inflows of project grants was about a third of what was
estimated.

19. The continued depression of the price of primary commodities on the world market
constrained the country's foreign exchange earning capacity. This led to acute shortage of
foreign currency, resulting in the Cedi depreciating massively against the major
currencies at the Central Bank. Foreign currency deposits with the commercial banks
increased by 95.8 percent between 1999 and 2000 mainly as a result of the ailing cedi.

GDP - Overall Growth

20. Provisional estimates of the country's Gross Domestic Product for year 2000 indicate a
growth rate of 3.7 per cent which is 1.3 percentage points below the targeted growth
rate of 5 per cent for the year and 0.7 percentage points lower than the growth
performance achieved in 1999. Similar to the pattern of growth over the last three years,
the services sector performed fairly strongly at 5.4 per cent during the year followed by the
industrial sector with a growth rate of 3.8 per cent while the agricultural sector recorded a
less than expected growth rate of 2.1 per cent as against the 3.9 per cent achieved in 1999.

Agriculture

21. As in previous years, the country's economy continued to be dominated by the
agricultural sector in 2000 accounting for 36.0 per cent of total real GDP.

22. At 1.1 per cent, the performance of the Crops and Livestock sub sector in the year 2000
was fairly disappointing compared to the 4.7 per cent achieved in 1999.

23. The Fishing sub-sector recorded a decline in growth of 1.6 per cent in 2000 as compared
with a growth rate of 1.0 per cent in 1999. It needs hardly be emphasized that the Fishing sub
sector has for several years achieved very disappointing results and will be targeted more
vigorously for a reversal of the dismal performances.

24. The Cocoa as well as Forestry and Logging sub-sectors however recorded impressive growth
rates of 6.2 per cent and 11.1 per cent respectively in year 2000. The corresponding
growth rates for 1999 for the two sub- sectors were negative 0.5 per cent and 6.8 per cent
respectively.

Industry

25. The growth of the Industrial sector in year 2000 was slightly weaker at 3.8 per cent
compared to the 4.9 per cent attained in 1999. All the four sub- sectors comprising Mining and
Quarrying, Manufacturing, Electricity and Water and Construction recorded lower growth rates in
year 2000 than the levels of performance in 1999.

Services

26. The Services sector covers a range of tertiary economic activities which are
categorized into six sub-sectors namely: Transport, Storage and Communications;
Wholesale and Retail Trade; Restaurants and Hotels; Finance, Insurance, Real Estate and
Business Services; Government Services; Community, Social and Personal Services and
Producers of Private non-profit services serving households. The sector has undergone
major reforms and has benefited from recent growth in other sectors. Consequently the
Sector has grown faster on the average than both the Agricultural and Industrial Sectors
over the years. In year 2000, the sector grew by 5.4 per cent as against 5.0 per cent in
1999.

Consumer Price Developments

27. There was a strong upsurge in inflationary pressures in the economy during the 2000 fiscal
year compared with price developments in 1999. The end-of-period inflation for the 12 months
ending December 2000 rose from 13.8 per cent in December 1999 to reach a high level of 40.5 per
cent.

28. The low rate of food price inflation which characterized the last nine months of 1999
continued into the first 7 months of 2000 until August when the rate accelerated to 10.9 per
cent and ended the year at 24.3 per cent.

29. In contrast to the relatively low rate of food price inflation recorded in the year 2000,
the rate of non-food price inflation rose sharply from 20.8 per cent in December 1999 to
54.2 per cent by the end of 2000, an increase of 33.4 percentage points.

30. Similar to the persistent rise in the rate of end-of period inflation in 2000, the average
yearly inflation more than doubled from 12.4 per cent in December 1999 to 25.2 per cent in
December 2000 after stagnating at an average rate of 12.4 per cent between December 1999 and
February 2000.

Fiscal Developments

31. The provisional outturn showed that the overall fiscal deficit (including divestiture)
was 8.5 per cent of GDP as compared with 6.5 per cent in 1999. Total revenue and grants
amounted to �5,385.0 billion while total expenditure came to �7,524.9 billion.

32. The provisional outturn of total grants (project and programme) was less than half of
the estimated target. Out of an estimate of �1,319.0 billion, only �574.3 billion actually
flowed in.

33. Tax revenue collections exceeded the original projections on account of good
performance from direct taxes, indirect and trade taxes. The provisional actual tax revenue
yielded �3,731.7 billion as against an estimate of �3,957.3 billion. However the petroleum tax
and cocoa export tax under performed. The reluctance of Government to increase the ex-
pump price of petrol in the face of increased f.o.b. price of crude oil accounted for the
under performance of the petroleum tax which recorded only �531.8 billion. Although the
volume of cocoa exported during the year increased, the depressed f.o.b. price of cocoa
hurt tax collection from the industry. Non-tax receipts amounted to �396.1billion, which is
13.1 per cent above the estimated target.

34. Provisional total expenditure amounted to �7,524.9 billion, which is 1.8 per cent less
than programmed. Non-interest outlays were �3,000.7 billion, which is 13.2 per cent higher
than budgeted. Total interest payments amounted to �2,033.3 billion, showing an over-
expenditure of 17.5 per cent. While the foreign exchange crises caused external debt servicing
arrears, interest payment on domestic debt went up 19.2 per cent as monetary developments
forced an increase in interest rate on treasury bills.

35. Provisional total capital outlay, comprising domestic and foreign funds amounted
to �2,490.8 billion and is 22.1 per cent lower than budgeted. While domestically funded
development expenditure exceeded the estimate by 33.8 per cent, foreign finance capital
outlay was 55.0 per cent of the estimate. Domestic arrears increased to �345.8 billion,
which is 103.4 per cent higher than was estimated.

Balance of Payments Developments

36. The objective of external sector policy in the medium term (2000-2002) was to accumulate
external reserves. Given the adverse effects of falling world prices for the country's major
exports however, it was initially estimated that the overall balance of payments for 2000
would be zero.

37. In the course of the year it became evident that the effects of the external shock
that hit the country in the latter part of 1999 were being felt throughout 2000. While the
prices of the country's major exports continued to be depressed, the international price of
crude oil continued to rise. Disbursement of official assistance was also low and often not
on time, thus the objective of having a zero overall balance of payments position for the
year could not be realised.

38. Provisional figures for 2000 indicate an overall balance of payments deficit of US$194.8
million, compared with an initial projected zero balance.

39. Total export receipts for 2000 are provisionally estimated at US$1,940.4 million,
compared to an amount of US$2,012.1 million realized in 1999. Earnings from cocoa exports
fell by 21 per cent, from US$552.3 million in 1999 to US$436.8 million in 2000 mainly on
account of a fall in price. The average price of cocoa beans exported fell by 24 per cent
from US$1,434.0 per tonne in 1999 to US$1,092.0 per tonne in 2000.

40. Gold proceeds amounted to US$702.0 millio9n compared to US$710.8 million in the
preceding year. The average price of gold exported was US$280.4 per fine ounce, slightly
higher than the average price of US$278.7 per fine ounce realized in 1999. gold volume
exported, however, went down from 2,550,766 fine ounces in 1999 to 2,503,858 ounces in
2000.

41. Despite a 15.2 per cent increase in the volume of timber exports over the 1999 level,
the export value was US$175.2 million, just about the same value received in 1999 and 1998.
this was as a result of significant drop in the average prices of about 13 per cent, from
US$401.7 per cubic metre in 1999 to US$351.3 per cubic metre in 2000.

42. Miscellaneous exports (including non- traditional exports) are valued at US$568.7
million, compared to US$680.0 million in 1999 and US$612.0 million in 1998.

43. The total value of imports (fob) are estimated at US$2,832.4 million for 2000
showing a fall of 12.3 per cent from the 1999 level. Non-oil imports declined significantly
by about 20 per cent due to the sharp depreciation of the cedi. The value of crude
oil and refined oil products rose by 56 per cent from US$333.3 million in 1999 to US$520.1
million in 2000. This was due entirely to the increase in crude oil prices from an average of
US$18 per barrel in 1999 to US$30.8 in 2000.

Current Account Balance

44. The current account excluding official transfers recorded a deficit of US$605.0
million (11.2 per cent of GDP) compared with a deficit of US$1,074.0 million (13.8 per cent of
GDP) in 1999, including transfers, the deficit reduced to US$474.1 million (8.7 per cent of
GDP compared to US$925.9 million in 1999. The improvement in the current account resulted
from developments in the trade account as well as larger inflows of private unrequited
transfers. Net private unrequited transfers increased from US$472.0 million to US$495.7
million in the year.

Capital Account

45. Provisional estimates for the year 2000 indicates that the capital account showed a net
inflow of US$251.7 million compared with US$564.9 million in 1999. The decline was
largely as a result of a fall in short-term capital inflows.

46. The net capital account balance was not enough to finance the current account balance
and this resulted in a deficit of US$194.7 million, which was financed from a drawdown on
international reserves and an accumulation of payment arrears.

Exchange Rate

47. The foreign exchange market experienced difficulties during the year 2000, as the cedi
depreciated strongly against the foreign currencies. At the beginning of the year, the
cedi, seemed to have stabilized, as the sharp depreciation experienced in the last quarter of
1999 slowed down. However, this was short-lived, as the second quarter recorded even
sharper depreciation throwing the foreign exchange market into crisis. By the end of the
third quarter through the last quarter of the year the cedi remained relatively stable.

Forex Bureau Market

48. In the forex bureau market, the depreciation of the cedi was not very different
from what was observed in the inter-bank market. The cedi/dollar rate increased from
�3,550.00 at the beginning of the year to �6,800.00 at the end of the year, showing an
annual depreciation of 91.5 per cent.

49. The reasons for the sharp depreciation of the cedi can be found in the deteriorating
fiscal conditions since 1999 which increased the savings investment gap for the Ghanaian
economy. This was aggravated by unfavourable developments in the international economic
environment which negatively affected foreign exchange inflows into the economy.

Monetary Developments

50. The primary objective of monetary policy in 2000 was to arrest the deterioration in the
macroeconomic situation which began in the latter part of 1999 and to restore some
stability in the economy. Accordingly, monetary policy was designed to achieve an end-
period inflation rate of 12.5 per cent, with monetary growth targeted at no more than 16.0
per cent. To this end, the central bank was expected to maintain a tight monetary policy
stance.

51. Monetary management during the year was rather difficult due to pressures emanating
from both the external and fiscal sectors. The collapse of gold and cocoa prices in 1999
persisted, while crude oil prices escalated, squeezing foreign exchange earnings, thereby
negatively impacting exchange rate developments. In addition, the non-receipt of
programmed foreign inflows and external trade-related revenues resulted in some fiscal
imbalances which were accommodated by the banking system. In the process, the rate of
inflation in the economy took an upward turn.

52. In the face of these developments, the central bank maintained a tight monetary policy
stance through the intensification of open market operations and the use of Repurchase
Agreements (Repos). In July 2000, the minimum primary reserve requirement for deposit money
banks was revised upwards from 8.0 per cent to 9.0 per cent to mop up excess liquidity and
soak up some of the pressures on the cedi.

53. These measures notwithstanding, the economy experienced a marked increase in
monetary growth compared to 1999. Broad money (M2+) grew by 39.8 per cent, compared with 16.1
per cent in 1999.

54. Interest rates were generally stable during the first five months of the year, but
surged upwards from June. Money market rates increased markedly in June and July before
declining in October, as the rate of inflation and depreciation of the Cedi slowed. The 91-
day Treasury Bill discount rate rose from 31.49 per cent in December 1999 to 40.60 per cent in
July before declining to 37.91 per cent in October 2000 and then stabilizing at 38.0 per
cent through November and December 2000.

55. Borrowing and lending rates of the deposit money banks also rose markedly between June and
August 2000. The average borrowing rate for the 3-month time deposit rate has stood at 33.50
per cent (up from 21.75 per cent in December 1999) since August 2000, while lending rates
for all sectors have averaged 47.5 per cent since October 2000 (up from 36.5 per cent in
December 1999).

56. By the end of 2000, total credit granted to public institutions and the private sector
by commercial banks increased from �2,160.10 billion ie. 74.9 per cent to a level of
�5,044.0 billion. Outstanding credit growth increased by 59.5 per cent. Of the outstanding
credit of �5,044.0 billion, the private sector accounted for �3,837.7 billion representing
76.5 per cent while the remainder went to public institutions.

57. During the year, the Manufacturing and Commerce and Finance sectors enjoyed a boost as
outstanding credit to those sectors doubled. Credit to the manufacturing sector increased by
�699.84 billion to �1,416.95 billion, while that for the Commerce and finance sector
increased by �397.91 billion to �849.35 billion. Other sectors that received
substantial increase in credit were services, �189.67 billion, and Agriculture, Forestry and
Fishing �146.43 billion.

Ghana's Debt

58. The total debt stock of Ghana stood at �41.10 trillion at the end of December 2000.
Out of this amount, �31.70 trillion (US$5.80 billion) was external and �9.40 trillion
(US$1.7 billion) was domestic. The total debt represented 224 per cent of exports, 709 per
cent of budget revenue and 124 per cent of GDP. In present value terms, it was 395 per cent of
revenue.

59. The domestic debt stock is mostly composed of short-term Treasury Bills bearing high
interest rates. Interest on domestic debt represented 43 per cent of budget revenue in
2000. Total debt service (excluding the cost of rolling over the Treasury Bills) absorbed
almost 100 per cent of domestic budget revenue, leaving virtually no room for domestic
financing of other expenditure.

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SECTION THREE: REVIEW OF EXPENDITURES AND PERFORMANCE OF SECTORS IN 2000

60. In 2000, the total amount of �3,314 billion was programmed for statutory payment
while �5,319 billion was estimated for discretionary expenditures.

61. The statutory payments of �3,314 billion was programmed to cater for expenditures for
the Education Trust Fund, the Road Fund, District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF),
transfers to households as well as principal and interest on foreign and domestic debt.

62. Actual expenditure under this category of expenditure was generally higher than
programmed in view of the higher than programmed interest rates and the depreciating
currency.

63. Discretionary expenditures which covered expenditures under items 1-4 was generally
restrained as a result of the lower than expected revenue performance. Consequently,
apart from releases for personal emoluments, most MDAs did not have significant releases for
items 2-4.

ADMINISTRATION SECTOR

64. The Administration broad sector comprises MDAs, which perform central management
functions of the central Government. Activities of some of the MDAs in this sector
are highlighted below.

Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development

65. Among the activities undertaken by the Ministry of Local Government and Rural
Development in 2000 were:
� 22 training programmes conducted by the
Institute of Local Government Studies for 630
local Government personnel and key
functionaries of District Assemblies;

� Disposal of Solid Waste in Accra and
Kumasi under the Expanded Sanitation Inspection
Policy;

� Improvement in Municipal Infrastructure in
17 towns including Accra, Kumasi and Tamale;
and

� Expansion of coverage of birth and death
registration.
Electoral Commission

66. The overall allocation to the Electoral Commission was �37.08 billion, however, the
actual expenditure for their normal activities in addition to the two general elections
totaled �37.8 billion.

67. With regard to activities under the Commission's programmes, all of the budgetary
requirements were met by the Government, and Donors, comprising �30.96 billion and �55.96
billion respectively.

68. The Commission undertook the following programmes:

� Revision of the Voters Register;

� Replacement of Thumbprint ID Cards with
Photo ID Cards; and

� Conduct of Presidential and Parliamentary
elections as well as the Presidential run-off.

Ministry of Finance

69. The Ghana Statistical Service conducted 2000 Population and Housing Census.

70. The revenue agencies continued to improve the infrastructure facilities so as to enhance
their revenue mobilization efforts. In this connection, rehabilitation and construction
continued on residential and office accommodation at Paga, Kulungugu, Asikuma,
Sampa, Kumasi, Takoradi, Kpetoe, Aflao, Elubo, Gonokrom and Osu Kuku Hill.

Ministry of Planning and Regional Co-operation and Integration

71. Among the activities undertaken by the Ministry in 2000 were:

� Organization and coordination of
programmes leading to the signing of the second
monetary zone Agreement by the Authority of
Heads of State of the participating countries.

� Review and preparation of the ECOWAS Trade
Liberalization Agreement for ratification by
the Authority of Heads of State.

ECONOMIC SERVICES SECTOR

Ministry of Food and Agriculture

72. Specific achievements of the Directorates and Agencies under the Ministry of Food and
Agriculture include the following:

a. In the Crop Sub-Sector, the production of
seed maize, cowpeas, rice and soyabean was
enhanced, while four improved varieties of
cassava were developed in multiplication sites
in 42 districts. Training and workshops in
various aspects of Agroforestry/Land and Water
Management techniques for agricultural field
staff were conducted.

b. In the livestock sub-sector, activities
centered on providing improved breeds of
livestock by assisting in the establishment of
intensive fodder plot and assurance of adequate
and nutritious feeding materials.

c. The Fisheries Directorate intensified
monitoring on the sea and on the Volta Lake.

73. In the area of Extension Services, the Women in Agricultural Development Directorate
was assisted in its training programmes and it also promoted the processing and utilisation of
unfermented cassava flour for making snacks like biscuits, tit bits and cakes.

Ministry of Lands and Forestry

74. The activities of the Ministry of Lands and Forestry have mainly been carried out
within the framework of the National Land Policy, which was launched in July 1999. The
policy is being pursued through four broad action areas:

� Facilitating access to land;
� Facilitating security of tenure and
protection of land rights;
� Development an effective institutional
capability and capacity for land
administration; and
� Integrated land use

75. During the year 2000, through a more focused approach, the rate of collection of
stumpage fees from current forest operations increased from less than 60 per cent in the
previous year to 97 per cent at the end of December. The award of Timber Utilisation
Contracts, which was to ensure compliance with sustainable forest management specifications
and environmental protection standards, was initiated and ratified by Parliament.

Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology

76. Government approved the National Science and Technology Policy, which provides the
framework for the integration of science and technology into the country's sustainable
development effort. The Ministry has developed action plans for the implementation of the
Science and Technology Policy.

77. The Ministry has also developed guidelines for the management and disposal of Liquid
Waste.

78. The operations of mining companies have been kept under close surveillance to ensure
that the environmental impacts of their activities are adequately addressed.

79. Government has also approved a new Ghana Atomic Energy Commission Act, which would
enable the Commission to commercialise its research output.

Ministry of Tourism

80. Major activities undertaken in year 2000 included the National Slave Route Project;
monitoring and evaluation of selected tourism plans in Eastern and Volta Regions, and
Emancipation Day Celebration. Ghana also participated in major tourism fairs in London,
Berlin and Milan to market and promote the country as a pristine destination.

Ministry of Trade and Industry

81. The major programmes and activities undertaken in the Trade and Industry Sector in
2000 included the following:

� Enactment of the Export Development and
Investment Fund Law. The Fund is to provide
financial resources for the development and
promotion of the export trade of the country;

� Participation in the 5-month long EXPO
2000 in Hannover, Germany, where Ghana's
cultural, tourist potential and non-traditional
export products were exposed to the over 4
million visitors to the fair and;

� Installation of the mobile X-ray scanning
machine at Tema Port to facilitate fast
clearance of goods.

82. The Ghana Standards Board continued its participation in the Destination Inspection
Scheme to intensify its enforcement of standards to ensure that imported goods are of
acceptable quality with respect to the protection of the safety and health of
consumers. The Board in addition pursued the installation of ISO 9000 Quality Management
Systems in various industries.

83. The Gateway Secretariat facilitated investment promotion missions aimed at
attracting investors for targeted sectors such as agro-processing, wood processing, textile,
electronic and electrical products and jewelry. The Secretariat, in conjunction with the CEPS,
introduced the World Trade Organisation Valuation System, which has brought precision,
and transparency in assessment of customs duties based on transactional values presented
by importers.

84. The Ghana Free Zones Board registered 78 companies out of which 52 are operational
employing over 6000 workers. The Board also registered two (2) developers, namely, the
Business Focus Group of Malaysia and International Land Development Company Limited
to provide factory space to free zone investors at the Tema Export Processing Zone. The Board
continued to encourage investors to produce value-added products and assist them to attain
the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS) with the view to ensuring effective market
penetration of free zone products into neighbouring countries.

85. In the area of export promotion, the Ghana Export Promotion Council undertook the
following programmes:

� Organised six (6) Export School programmes
for Exporters and Export Facilitators in the
Greater Accra, Ashanti and Western Regions;

� Completed preparatory work on the
development of ten (10) identifiable export
products on a pilot basis in five (5) Districts
under a UNDP/ITC funding.

INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES SECTOR

Ministry of Works and Housing
86. In a determined effort to improve the delivery of water in the country, the
Government embarked on emergency works to rehabilitate, expand and improve the
distribution network in the Western area of Accra, (eg. Weija Water Works), as well as
Winneba, Akwapim Ridge, Koforidua, Tamale, Sekondi-Takoradi, and ATMA Rural Water.
87. High Level tanks, each of 100,000 gallon capacity, have been installed in some selected
parts within the Accra - Tema Metropolitan Area considered to be distressed and deprived to
store and supply water throughout the day. The areas are Teshie, Accra Girls, Tantra Hill,
Adentan, Pantang, Ashongman village, John Teye, Kasoa, New Madina-Atraco area, Accra Academy,
New Achimota, Adentan-Housing Down and Madina- Ashalley Botwe area.
88. Under the Community Water and Sanitation Agency Programme, the following activities were
undertaken:
� Construction of 329 boreholes, 2,220
household latrines and 1,003 school and
institutional latrines;
� Rehabilitation of 619 boreholes, 107 hand
dug wells, 22 small community pipe schemes, 24
small town pipe systems; and
� Conversion of 603 water facilities to come
under Community Operation and Management (COM).

89. In the 2000 fiscal year, an amount of �6.39 billion was released for various
hydrological activities in the area of some primary drainage works at Sunyani, Techiman,
Nsuta, Beposo, Agogo, Konongo, Achimota, La, Dzorwulu and Odaw.
90. On the Coastline protection programme, Government spent �657 million for emergency
work at Nkontompo, Prince Akatakyi, Prampram, Ngyeresia, Komenda, Philip Quaicoo, Akplabanya
and La. Similarly, an amount of �9.28 billion was used for flood control programmes and
mitigation in Accra.
91. Work on the Keta Sea Defence Project has progressed.

92. Government successfully obtained additional funds to cover 100 per cent cost of
construction of the Korle-Lagoon Ecological Restoration Project. Dredging, which forms the
main component of the project, has been encouraging. Channel excavation and soil
improvement in the vicinity of the Lagoon were carried out in the year 2000.

Ministry of Roads and Transport

93. During the year under review, the Ministry continued with the expansion, maintenance,
rehabilitation and modernisation of the roads and transport infrastructure and services in
order to provide the enabling environment for the growth of industry, agriculture and other
social services.

94. An amount of �728.1billion made up of �101 billion of GoG resources, �328.2 billion of
external resources and �298 billion from the Road Fund were utilised for the roads and
transport sector in 2000.

95. Major road maintenance work undertaken in year 2000 are:

� Routine maintenance - 24,735 km
� Periodic Maintenance - 5,473 km
� Reconstruction - 344km.

SOCIAL SERVICES SECTOR

96. The Social Services sector consists of five ministries and three Commissions. In
2000, the sector was allocated an amount of �1475.90 billion, representing 27.75 per cent
of total discretionary expenditure.

Ministry of Education

97. The Ghana Education Service is responsible for the management of pre-tertiary
education in Ghana.

98. The Girl Child Education Unit in seeking to improve female participation in education
appointed District Girls' education officers to attend to gender issues in the Districts and to
ensure the participation of girls in schools. A series of in-service training courses were
organised for 60 girls education officers. The unit also organised a workshop for gender
analysis for policy and planning for district directors of education to help them implement
gender equitable policies in education. One hundred and seven out of one hundred and ten
district Directors benefited from the Workshop.

99. Some progress was made in respect of provision of facilities for the sub sector
which include the:

� Commencement of construction of flats by
the Ghana Hostels Limited, a subsidiary of the
Social Security and National Insurance Trust
(SSNIT) to ease the accommodation problem
facing many University students. The flats are
at various stages of completion.

� Construction work on the Clinical
Students' Hostel at the Komfo Anokye Teaching
Hospital in Kumasi also progressed.

100. The Ghana Education Trust Fund was established and its Board of Trustees
inaugurated.

Ministry of Health

101. The Ministry set out to achieve four priority outputs to be achieved in 2000. These
were 65 per cent coverage in child immunization, 42 per cent supervisory delivery,
14 per cent contraceptive prevalence and 0.38 OPD attendance per capita.

102. In the area of public health, about 70 per cent of the children targeted for immunization
against the 5 childhood killer diseases was achieved.

103. Vitamin A coverage of target population (6- 59 months) totaled 3,103,119 and represented 90
per cent of the target.

104. At end of June 2000, 17,895 cases of measles were reported compared with 9,383 for
the same period in 1999 which indicates a surge in measles. This therefore calls for greater
vigilance in 2001.

105. At the end of September 2000 a cumulative total of 41,229 cases had been reported. The
surveillance revealed 3,931 new cases between January and September 2000. Heterosexuals
accounted for 80 per cent.

106. Priority interventions in 2000 included promotion of safer sex, improvement in
management of STDs, safe blood transfusion, infection control, counseling and nursing and
clinical management of persons living with HIV/AIDS.

107. In 2000 a national strategic framework to respond to HIV/AIDS was approved by cabinet and
use of it commenced for the District Response Initiative.

108. Other achievements in the year included the successful introduction of the female
condom and the inauguration of the National AIDS Commission.

109. The year 2000 was a fruitful one for Malaria control initiatives. The Public-
Commercial partnership for the Insecticide Treated Bednets/materials Project was launched
and has caught on with the public. Malaria specific data collection commenced in 10
regional hospitals.

Ministry of Communications

110. The telecom sector continued to witness some modest expansion in both infrastructural
works and increased accessibility to telecommunication facilities. Ghana Telecom for
instance was able to increase telephone lines to 200,000 during the year and public access to
payphones was also increased by providing additional payphones.

PUBLIC SAFETY SECTOR

111. In the year 2000, about 90 per cent of expenditure programmes for Public Safety was
dedicated to the Ministries of Interior and Defence for the maintenance of law and order,
the protection of life and property and crime detection while 10 per cent went to support the
Administration of Justice.
112. However, Mr. Speaker, armed robbery and the serial killing of women were among serious
criminal activities that haunted the populace in the year 2000. Government however provided
logistic support and new vehicles to the Security Agencies, especially the Police to
contain the situation. There is however room for improvement.

Ministry of Justice

113. Under the Legal Sector Reform Project, the Ministry as the executing agency supervised the
implementation of certain programmes and projects in collaboration with the Judiciary
and other MDAs.

114. The major areas were:

� A reduction in the backlog of cases by
about 74 per cent;

� Continuation of the mechanization of the
courts;

� Preparation of a draft Alternative
Conflict Resolution bill for solving
disputes out of courts;
and

� Revision and publication of guidelines for
judges.

Ministry of Defence

115. During the year under review, the Ministry of Defence continued its traditional role of
defending the territorial integrity and constitution of the country in addition to its
increased participation in international peace keeping activities.

116. A total of �66.05 billion was spent on the country's participation in peace keeping
activities in Sierra Leone and other places.

117. The major projects undertaken by the Ministry of Defence included the following:

� Repairs on the Naval dockyard;

� Maintenance on some military aircraft; and

� Installation of sewerage treatment plants
at Ho and Sunyani Barracks

Ministry of Interior

118. During the year, the Ministry of Interior spent a total of �233.6 billion to execute its
programmes and projects.

119. The Ministry initiated the revision of some policy and operational guidelines needed
to ensure greater efficiency in service delivery and enhance the maintenance of Public
Safety.

120. The Police Service recruited 1200 personnel to augment its number, while the Fire
Service, Immigration and Prison Service together replaced about 1000 personnel who had
left the service through retirement, wastage, resignations etc.

Police Service

121. An amount of �3.4 billion was spent by the Police Hospital to deliver essential health
services and drugs to Service Personnel.

122. The Police in addition took delivery of twenty-one (21) new vehicles in 2000 to improve
their patrol functions.

Prison Service

123. The Prison Service spent �7.66 billion in 2000 to feed about 9,500 prisoners as part of
its Service expenditures.

124. To continue with the Prisoners Reformation Programme, an amount of �223 million was
released in 2000 to purchase building materials, to be used by Prison inmates to
rehabilitate prison structures.

National Disaster Management Organisation(NADMO)

125. NADMO spent an amount of �13.70 billion in 2000 to provide Disaster Management and Relief
Support to Disaster Victims all over the country. These included:

� Provision of relief/medical support and
transportation to about 4,000 Ghanaian
returnees from Libya.

� Provision of disaster relief items for
victims of flood, rainstorm, bush fires among
others.

POVERTY REDUCTION

126. In the 2000 Financial Year Government continued to fulfill its commitment to poverty
reduction and allocated about 17.4 per cent of total Government expenditure for the provision
of basic services for the poor and free medical attention for pregnant women, infants, the aged
and for others and selected diseases qualified for exemptions.

127. Though modest, these expenditures had an impact on some key human development indicators
as follows:

� In the 2000/2001 academic year, the
Ministry of Education estimated that while
gross enrollment was 84.8 per cent for boys in
primary school, that of girls was 74.4 per
cent. This however indicated that there was
still a gender gap in primary school
enrollment.

� In health, immunization (DPT 3) coverage
improved from 73 per cent in 1999 to 80 per
cent in 2000. The incidence of guinea worm (a
water-borne disease) that was assuming an
upward trend from a previous downward trend
began reducing again. The MOH reported that it
dropped by only 18 per cent from 9,027 cases in
1999 to 7,402 cases by the end of last year.
This is partly due to the fact that a
significant percentage of people in the rural
areas still have no access to safe water and
are still drinking from untreated natural
sources such as rivers, streams and dams that
give water-borne diseases.

� According to the Community Water and
Sanitation Agency (CWSA) that is responsible
for the provision of safe drinking water in the
rural areas, rural water coverage increased
from 39 per cent in 1999 to 47 per cent in
2000.

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SECTION FOUR: MACROECONOMIC PROGRAMME FOR 2001

The Budget and Financial Programme for Year 2001

128. For the year 2001 the macroeconomic targets are as follows:

� a real GDP growth rate of 4.0 per cent;

� an end-of-period rate of inflation of 25
per cent;

� an overall broad budget deficit equivalent
to 5.2 per cent of GDP; and

� an overall balance of payments surplus of
US$165.7 million.

129. The projected 4.0 per cent growth of GDP in year 2001 is based on a projected growth of
3.7 per cent in the agriculture sector, a 4.0 per cent growth in industry and a 4.3 per cent
growth in services.

Resource Allocation for 2001

130. Total tax revenue is projected to rise from �4,414.7 billion in 2000 to �5,932.9
billion in 2001, while non-tax revenue is programmed to decline from �396 billion in 2000
to �350 billion in 2001.

131. In line with the overall macro-economic targets for 2001, total receipts are projected
at �13,826.70 billion. This is made up of tax revenue of �5,932 billion, non-tax revenue of
�350 billion, foreign grants of �1,872 billion and divestiture receipts of �391.2 billion.
Project and programme loans are projected at �842.5 billion and �1,070.1 billion,
respectively. Net domestic financing of the budget is estimated at �760.3 billion.

132. Total payments for 2001 are estimated at �13,826.7 billion. Out of this, statutory
payments are estimated at �7,770.1 billion, while discretionary payments are programmes at
�6,056.6 billion.

133. Interest payments are projected at �3,195.6 billion, out of which �2,082.2 billion
is for domestic interest payments. An amount of �272.5 billion had been provided for
transfers to households, namely pensions and gratuities.

134. It is estimated that an amount of �326.4 billion will be transferred into the Road Fund,
while �358.3 billion will be transferred into an Education Trust Fund.

135. Personal emoluments (including Government contributions to SSNIT on behalf of its
workers) are estimated to rise from �1,956.2 billion in 2000 to �2,615.1 billion in 2001,
while the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) is projected at �296.6 billion.
Investment expenditure for 2001 is estimated at �2,641.6 billion, of which domestic financed
investment expenditure is �915 billion out of which an amount of �435 billion will be
utilized to clear outstanding arrears of 2000.

136. The 2001 expenditure profile for these sectors is as follows:

� Administration - �2,206.18 billion
� Economic services - �948.97 billion
� Infrastructure services - �736.50
billion
� Social services - �1,910.21billion
� Public safety - �502.60 billion
� Contingency - �25.0 billion

Balance of Payments Outlook

137. The thrust of external sector policy in 2001 and the medium term will continue to be
the accumulation of external reserves. Inspite of the adverse effects of falling world market
prices for the country's major export commodities, it is estimated that the overall
balance of payments will be a surplus of US$165.7 million.

138. Balance of payments projections for the year 2001 show that the value of exports will
increase marginally by US$41.2 million or 2.1 per cent. The value of cocoa exports is
expected to increase by 11.9 per cent to US$488.6 million, on account of projected
higher prices. Gold exports are projected to decrease by US$57.9 million to US$644.1 million
due to a projected fall in the world market price as well as a decline in volume exported.

139. Receipts from timber products are projected to increase by 4.6 per cent to
US$183.3 million. The projected rise is on account of expected increase in volume.

140. Total receipts from other exports, including non-traditional exports, for the year
2001 is expected to be US$665.7 million, an increase of US$39.3 million over the 2000
provisional out-turn.

141. The current account balance (excluding official transfers) is projected at a deficit
of US$527.0 million (10.8 per cent of GDP). Including official transfers, this deficit will
reduce to US$265.0 million (5.5 per cent of GDP).

142. Net capital inflows are expected to amount to US$430.7 million of which official capital
is projected at US$345.0 million. Net private capital and short-term capital are projected at
US$55.7 million and US$30.0 million respectively.

143. The net capital account will more finance the current account deficit and result an
overall balance of US$165.7 million for the year. Of this surplus, US$68.7 million will be
used to settle external payment arrears and US$97.0 million will be used to build up
external reserves.

Monetary Outlook For 2001

144. The pursuit of price stability will continue to be the goal of monetary policy in
2001, as price stability provides the enabling environment for the mobilization of domestic
resources and their efficient allocation to their most productive uses. To this end
monetary policy will seek to attain a monetary growth rate of 32.0 per cent for 2001.

145. In order to attain the monetary policy objective for 2001, the Bank of Ghana will
maintain a tight monetary policy stance and actively use Open Market Operations (OMO),
REPOs and interest rate policy to influence monetary aggregates in the desired direction.
The Bank will review the rediscount rate and restore its signalling role in the economy
while the exchange rate of the cedi will continue to be market-determined.

146. The Bank of Ghana will continue to enforce bank prudential regulations to ensure the
soundness and stability of the financial system towards the development of the economy.
Currently, there are a number of new laws before Parliament aimed at facilitating
financial transactions, strengthening and deepening the financial system in general, and
the Bank of Ghana in particular. These new laws include the Banking Law, the Bank of Ghana
Law, the Bills and Checks bill, and the Payment Systems bill.

Ghana's Debt Outlook

147. External debt is expected to increase to around �34.1 trillion (US$6.2 billion). This
will be due to more new borrowings over debt repayments, creating a net inflow of around
$402.30 million.

148. As Government restores fiscal discipline and improves on revenue collection, borrowing
domestically to finance expenditure will be markedly reduced, when long dated bills
borrowing will become the norm.

149. The Domestic debt stock is thus projected to fall from �9.4 trillion (US$1.7 billion) to
about �6.6 trillion (US$1.2 billion) by end year 2002.

150. To further ease the total debt burden a number of options, where appropriate will be
used. These will include:

� Negotiations for debt relief;

� Debt conversion programmes;

� Debt swaps;

� More concessional borrowing;

� Use of privatization proceeds to retire some
outstanding debts; and

� Restructuring options with banks and other
institutions.

151. In effect both domestic and external debt will be brought to more sustainable levels.

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SECTION FIVE: SECTORAL RESOURCE ALLOCATION FOR YEAR 2001

ADMINISTRATION SECTOR

152. The MDAs under the broad administration sector have been allocated a total of �2,206.18
billion. Out of this, an amount of �1,340.99 billion has been allocated to General
Government Services. The General Government Services vote has once again been earmarked for
adjustments, including salary changes, road and non-road arrears in respect of 2000.

Ministry of Finance

153. A provision of �139.17 billion has been made for year 2001.

154. Work will be completed by the middle of this year on the 4-storey Financial Information
Centre for the Ministry of Finance to enable hardware and the software for the BPEMS to be
installed within the year.

155. The VAT Service will expand its activities in year 2001 by opening additional offices,
recruiting and training of staff for effective tax collection, purchase equipment to support
control and verification work. The Service will also integrate Accounting Administration and
Operational Systems within a Network and will fully decentralise the Information Support
Services Unit throughout all VAT Offices.

156. Specific programmes targeted for implementation by CEPS within the year include
automation of the warehousing facility to be continued with the computerisation of the
warehouses to join up in a network with CEPS System to facilitate monitoring. The programme
for full automation of the Customs Procedures, Ghana Management System (GCMS) and the Ghana
Community Network (GCNET) is expected to take off by the middle of the year at the Kotoka
International Airport in line with the Gateway Project. Specific projects targeted for
completion within the year include major rehabilitation and constructional works to
residential and office accommodation at Paga, Kulungugu, Asikuma, Sampa, Kumasi, Takoradi,
Kpetoe, Aflao, Elubo and Gonokrom. In addition, a number of outstations including
Gonokrom, Hamile and Wli Agorviefe will be connected to the National Electricity grid. The
construction of baggage examination sheds at Elubo, Paga and Gonokrom shall also be
completed within the year.

157. The Internal Revenue Service intends improving collection through opening of new
District and Sub-District offices and collection points within the year.

Ministry of Economic Planning and Regional Co-operation

158. An amount of �42.06 billion has been allocated to the Ministry. The vision of Ghana
becoming a middle-income country by the year 2020 is overdue for review and re-direction. A
new national vision will be prepared to reflect lessons learnt during the past five years and
project the Government's new vision of the golden age of business.

159. The new Medium Term Plan (2001-2005) currently being prepared will be redirected to reflect the new national vision. It will also
be used to achieve greater coordination in the cross-sector plans of the various ministries,
departments and agencies to ensure a greater opportunity for realising our national vision.

160. A national economic summit will be convened in conjunction with Ministry of
Finance to enable the Ministry examine the current state of the economy, to plan together
on new growth targets and to agree on the short, medium and long term targets for
development. Short-term measures for stabilizing the economy will be one of the
outputs of the national forum. This will enable Ministry of Finance to institute
measures to put the ailing economy back on track.

161. The Ministry will start work on the development of a quantitative model which will
enable the setting of realistic targets and prepare more accurate forecasts and projections
as well as determine the effects of policies strategic options.

162. A co-ordinated programme of actions will be formulated to ensure that Ghana gains the
full benefits of an integrated West African market economy. Measures will be focused on
strategies to support the expansion of Ghana's trade opportunities within the ECOWAS sub-
region and even beyond.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

163. A provision of �165.40 billion has been made for year 2001 for the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs to achieve their objectives.

164. The consular services would be made more efficient worldwide and the processing of visas
for investors would be handled with minimum delay. Cost saving Honorary Consulates, which
are non-remunerative establishments, will be opened at strategic locations to facilitate the
acquisition of travel documents and visas by Ghanaians, tourists and investors alike, in
order to make Ghana both tourist and investor friendly.

165. The resources will also enable Ghana to fulfil its commitments under various Joint
Commissions for cooperation with other countries and obligations of membership of
international organisations. The Joint Commissions will be expanded and refocused to
provide a forum for private sector led economic cooperation and trade promotion.

Ministry of Local Government and RuralDevelopment

166. For the 2001 fiscal year, a total budgetary allocation of �209.48 billion has
been approved to finance the Ministry's programmes and activities. The amount is made
up of �108.75 billion from GoG and �100.73 billion from Donors.

167. The Ministry will pursue actions in 2001 to review the local Government law, clarify the
mandate of the District Assemblies, and remove conceptual differences which held up
establishment of the Local Government Service and integration of the decentralized
departments and their budgets into District Assemblies and Regional Co-ordinating Councils.
Urban/Town/Zonal/Area councils will also be assisted to participate more vigorously in the
local decision making structure.
168. The Ministry will strengthen and improve
local revenue generation from all available sources. The Urban, Town, Zonal and Area
Councils will be encouraged to pursue identification of revenue areas such as house
numbering and street naming for property rating and collection purposes.

169. Implementation of the National Environmental Sanitation Policy will be
intensified in the course of the year. District Assemblies will be resourced to give a
much needed fillip to the Programme of Expanded Sanitary Inspection and Compliance Enforcement
and to improve on both the coverage and regularity of sanitation services countrywide.
Work will also continue on the waste disposal site in Accra, to provide the metropolis with a
modern facility for the effective management and treatment of waste. Work on similar
facilities for Sekondi, Kumasi and Tamale will commence during the year under the Urban
Environmental Sanitation Project.

170. Socio-economic infrastructure - town roads, markets, lorry parks and drains - will
continue to be upgraded and provided under the urban upgrading and development programmes of
the Ministry, in five primary cities and 12 selected urban settlements. Implementation of
the Urban V project which has been under preparation since 1997, will commence during
the year to improve urban infrastructure in an additional 25 urban towns.

171. The programme of support to improve the infrastructural and institutional base of
district capitals and other towns in beneficiary districts of the District Capitals
Projects will also be continued in 2001. Settlements with populations of over 5,000
inhabitants in 10 beneficiary Districts in Ashanti and Brong Ahafo Regions, will be
provided socio-economic infrastructure under the Promotion of District Capitals II & III
projects.

172. The Department of Community Development will continue its programme of facilitating the
entry of women's groups into small-scale commercial/artisanal and entrepreneurial
ventures. Up to 1,800 young women will receive vocational training and a further 1,200 women's
groups will be equipped with skills to enhance their economic opportunities.

173. Work on the establishment of a 50-acre scientific medicinal farm will continue at
Aburi as part of the sector's programme of conserving and protecting the nation's genetic
plant resources. Support for the commercialisation and export of horticultural
products will be increased for private sector participation in horticultural development.

Office of Parliament

174. As indicated by His Excellency the President in his Sessional Address to this
House, work will be accelerated for early completion of the tower block of Parliament to
be used as offices for members of Parliament and their supporting staff.

Ministry for Media Relations

175. The newly created Ministry for Media Relations is charged with responsibility for
the Ghana News Agency, Information Services Department and the erstwhile Public Affairs
Secretariat at the Castle has been allocated a total sum of �10.55 billion for its activities
for the year.

ECONOMIC SERVICES SECTOR

Ministry of Food and Agriculture

176. In line with the aims and objectives articulated in the Government's Manifesto, the
Ministry will work towards the transformation of the sector into highly productive and
profitable industry to help reduce rural poverty and thus help stem rural-urban drift.
In pursuit of the Ministry's objectives, the Ministry has been allocated an amount of
�453.75 billion in the 2001 Budget.

177. For the 2001 fiscal year, the Ministry will work to ensure that all Ghanaians have
access to adequate food at affordable prices by eating what we produce and canning what we
cannot eat for the lean season.

178. The Ministry will review and better coordinate its technical and technological
services to farmers and fishermen to improve efficiency and performance in the production,
processing and marketing of staples such as rice, maize, cassava, yams and plantain for the
local market and cocoa as well as non- traditional agricultural commodities for the
export market to help improve Ghana's balance of payment position.

179. The first priority is to reduce rice importation by at least 30 per cent in value
from the approximately US$100 million spent on importing rice annually to supplement local
production. The reduction in rice importation will be substituted by a local production of
72,000 metric tons milled rice which will create jobs to increase rural incomes. In this
regard, steps will be taken to ensure that rice farmers are provided with high yielding
improved varieties.

180. The Ministry will continue its consultation with fertilizer importers and the
Agricultural Development Bank, to work out the modalities for ensuring timely importation of
fertilizers at affordable prices to farmers during the 2001 farming season.

181. One of the biggest problems with the rice industry is the poor quality of locally milled
rice. The Ministry, in collaboration with the Japanese Government, will work with a rice-
milling expert from Egypt under Japan's South- South Cooperation Support Programme to help
improve the quality of milled rice in Ghana this year.

182. Additionally, a programme is being drawn up to fully utilize the 100,000 metric tons per
year world class Rice Mill at Aveyime to its fullest capacity. This will include providing
enough funds to cultivate more than 2000 acres at Aveyime twice this year as well as
encouraging rice farmers at Afife, Kpong, Dawenya and other irrigated sites to produce
enough rice to feed the mill.

183. Production levels of maize seem to have peaked at the 1,000,000 metric tons per annum
in recent years. Therefore in order to revitalize the maize industry, a target of 10
per cent growth has been set for 2001. This growth implies expanding the area under maize
production by 70,000 hectares and making conscious effort to screen and make available
to farmers high yielding maize varieties as well as timely supply of appropriate fertilizer
and agro-chemicals. The expected increase in maize production will enable poultry and pig
farmers to reduce their expenditures on imported maize, reduce production costs and
hopefully help reduce the cost of poultry meat and eggs to the average consumer.

184. A programme of purchasing for Buffer Stocks and also increasing processing to reduce
post-harvest losses will be pursued. Two cereal crops, maize and rice, will be used in
the Buffer Stock Project. This is because they command the highest demand among the cereals
and have excellent handling and storage characteristics. Marketable surplus for maize
is estimated at 700,000 metric tons out of the national production of about 1.0 million metric
tons. That for rice is about 50,000 metric tons out of a national output of 120,000 metric
tons.

185. Ghana is one of the few countries in West Africa that imports virtually all the sugar it
consumes. Another area of emphasis in the crop sub-sector is the production of sugar from
sugarcane. By the end of 2001, the Ministry would have completed all feasibility studies
involving the social, economic and financial viability of re-launching the sugar industry in
Ghana. The objective will be to produce at least 25 per cent of Ghana's sugar requirements
by the end of 2003.

186. In the livestock sub-sector, emphasis during the year will be on reducing the
mortality of the village chicken. The Ministry through its Veterinary Services Directorate has
developed and tested a simple-to-use heat stable Newcastle vaccine, which will reduce the
mortality of the village chicken.

187. Attention will also be given to ruminants in the livestock sub-sector. Ghana's ruminant
livestock population stands at about 1.2 million cattle, 2.4 million sheep and 2.5
million goats. The rapid development of the ruminant population has been impeded by
constraints such as lack of improved breeding stock, poor nutrition, high incidence of pests
and diseases and the general lack of ranches where animals could be properly fed and
maintained and slaughtered for meat.

188. For this year, the economic viability of establishing fattening centres for livestock
based on proper housing, health-care and good feeding will be determined.

189. In the fisheries sub-sector, aquaculture will be given special attention. Available
information indicates that the annual demand for fish is between 700,000 and 800,000 metric
tons while the total fish stock available from Ghanaian fresh and marine resources is 400,000
metric tons per year. The deficit of about 300,000 metric tons will be filled by imports
or aquaculture sources.

190. While action will be taken to improve the Monitoring, Surveillance and Control (MSC) of
our marine resources to minimize poaching by foreign registered vessels, the emphasis will
be on systematic development of aquaculture on the basis of current technological and
scientific knowledge.

191. A special relationship will be created between the Ministries of Finance, Agriculture
and Trade and Industry to ensure that the chronic problem of finance which faces the
Agriculture Sector is minimised and that agricultural products form the foundation of
our industrial sector. This economic "tripod" will assist the agro-industrialisation of the
country.

Ministry of Tourism

192. Tourism is now recognised as one of the most important socio-economic activities and
the fastest growing sector of the economy. Although the tourism sector is making immense
contribution towards the generation of foreign exchange earnings, employment, income and
revenues, the industry needs to be helped. Its development, promotion and marketing should be
accelerated to enable the country derive the expected optimum benefits necessary to achieve
a growth rate of 8 per cent required to enable the sector contribute about 3.8 per cent to the
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by the end of the year.

193. Accordingly, the Government will continue to support both public and private sector
investments in tourism infrastructure for the development, promotion and marketing of
historical, cultural, recreational, conference and eco-tourism across the country.

194. Consequently, the Government, in the course of the year, will consider the
possibility of establishing a Tourism Development Fund, which is intended to provide
accessible funding to support public and private sector investments.

195. In addition to the above, the following activities will be pursued:

� Government will undertake site
identification, documentation and preparation
of related feasibility studies for the
development of the Slave Route Project to
support cultural and historical tourism;

� Institutional capacity will be enhanced in
the public and private sectors to ensure
efficient and quality service delivery that
will promote Ghana as a competitive and quality
tourist destination;

� Community involvement in tourism
development will be enhanced through public
awareness programmes to spread the socio-
economic benefits of tourism across the
country; and

� A Management Information System for the
tourism sector will be developed to make
information available and accessible to
investors and other end-users.

196. To undertake the above activities and
programmes, the Ministry of Tourism has been allocated an amount of �6.98 billion for 2001.

Ministry of Energy

197. For the 2001 fiscal year, the Ministry of Energy is allocated a sum of �206.53 billion to
undertake various programmes most of which were initiated during the previous year. Out of
this amount, �186.59 billion will be from donors. An amount of �199.43 billion will be
spent on national electrification while �3.83 billion will be used to promote energy
efficiency and conservation.

198. Government recognises that the ability to achieve its socio-economic objectives will
depend upon the continuous availability and usage of energy. To ensure continuous supply
of electricity, Government will accelerate the process for strategic and rationalized planning
by publishing a coherent Energy Policy this year. Among other things, an Energy Policy
will ensure that necessary investments are made at the right time and further that such
investments are driven by a strategic plan.

199. The West African Gas Pipeline Project holds tremendous prospects for Ghana. The
availability of this relatively cheap and clean source of energy in Ghana will no doubt go a
long way to reducing our crude oil import bill. This year the Government of Ghana will
facilitate collaborative effort with participating Governments of the Republic of
Benin, Togo and the Federal Republic of Nigeria, to harmonize all fiscal, legal and the
environmental regimes to move the project towards its realisation before the end of year
2003.

200. Government will support on-going discussions by VRA to arrange private support
to provide an additional 110 MW of power at the Aboadze Thermal Project to bring total capacity
of the Aboadze Plant to 660 MW.

201. To further augment power generation capacity in the country and in line with the
pledge contained in the Government's Agenda for Positive Change Government will proceed with
the Bui Dam project. During the year 2001, due diligence, including environmental impact
studies will be completed on the Bui project, and the needed guarantee agreements will be
signed between VRA and the consortium of developers to clear the way for the
construction of the 200 x 2 MW plant to take off. This project, when completed by 2006, will
establish a firm supply balance between thermal and hydro generation in the country.

202. Firm arrangements for crude oil supplies to Tema Oil Refinery and also for finished
products are being made. This is to ensure regular flow of petroleum products in the
country. With the recent restoration of full ex-refinery cost recovery and the publication
of a formula which will constantly adjust ex- refinery cost and ex-pump prices to sustain
the principle of full cost recovery, it is the expectation of Government that a proper
environment to guarantee continuous availability of petroleum products now exists
in the country.

203. The distribution arrangement for petroleum products has been reviewed and in
particular the unnecessary intervention of BOST in the distribution network has been removed.
The new arrangement which requires direct relationship between the refinery and the oil
marketing companies should not only enhance efficiency but also cut down on cost.

204. The complete absence of strategic reserves of petroleum products which we inherited cannot
be tolerated any longer. The strategic stock levy of �10 per litre has therefore been
increased to �30 per litre. Depending upon the availability of stocks in the refinery, it is
intended that we shall start the build up of a national strategic stock reserve for rainy
days. With the assurance of this steady flow of income over the years, Government intends to
seek funding for the construction of more storage depots at strategic places in the
country.

205. Government will continue to promote both the National and Rural Electrification
Programmes with renewed vigour. To ensure the sustainability of the electrification
programmes, emphasis will be placed on the productive uses of electricity. To this end
the Ministry of Energy has been directed to liaise with the National Board for Small Scale
Industries to complement all future rural electrification projects with appropriate
cottage industrial programmes.

206. Government will accelerate the search for hydrocarbons in the country. As already
announced, the GNPC will be stripped of all its non-core activities so that there will emerge a
trimmed down GNPC of sufficiently motivated staff to focus on the search for hydrocarbons.

Ministry of Trade & Industry

207. The major policy thrust of the Government in the Trade and Industry sector is to
effectively develop and promote trade and industry to be outwardly oriented and globally
competitive. In order to achieve this policy objective, Government will encourage more
Ghanaian firms to develop a culture and orientation for export trade. Ghanaian
exporters will be assisted to take advantage of export markets, especially in the ECOWAS sub-
region.

208. In pursuance of the above, the activities that will be undertaken by the Ministry will
include:

� Pursue enhanced trade relations with the
United States of America (USA) within the
context of the African Growth and Opportunity
Act (AGOA) and the Trade and Investment
Framework Agreement (TIFA);

� Pursue new product development in textiles
and garments through the establishment of a
sewing laboratory to train operators in
computer-aided design and manufacturing;

� Train and develop staff capacity in fields
relevant to the Ministry's operations; and

� Liaise with District Assemblies to prepare
project profiles and organize trade and
investment fora.

209. The Ghana Gateway Project will deepen its co-ordination and strengthen the institutional
capacity of its project implementation agencies to promote the objective of making Ghana the
hub of industrial and business activities in the Sub-Region.

210. Similarly the Ghana Free Zones Board will continue to provide off-site infrastructural
facilities for the Tema Export Processing Zone to enhance its attraction to investors. The
Board will also assist Free Zone Enterprises to retain ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme
status.

211. The Ministry will also undertake the following:

� Promote, develop and sustain growth of
Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) by improving
entrepreneurial, managerial and technical
competence of MSE operators through its
training programmes;

� Train graduates from tertiary and
vocational institutions to enable them
establish viable micro and small enterprises.

212. Government has recognized the negative impact of the trade liberalization policy on
domestic businesses and will address the issue by:

� Further rationalisation and streamlining
of tariffs;
� Further consideration of the
promulgation of a law on competition and
fair trade; and
� Commencement of work on legislation on
anti-dumping.

213. A Public-Private Partnership for Industrial Development (PPPID) will be
established within the framework of the Integrated Industrial Programme in the course
of the financial year. This body will address major constraints to industrial development.

214. Government will continue to support activities in the designated priority sub-
sectors of food and fish processing, textiles and garments, wood and wood processing and
packaging. In addition, the metal and engineering sub-sector which underpins
development in the outlined sub-sectors will be actively supported, particularly in the
manufacture of machinery, equipment and spare parts.

215. A total amount of �72.04 billion has been allocated to the Ministry to carry out the
above activities and programmes for the year 2001.

Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology

216. In the area of Science and Technology, Government intends to develop financial
incentives for companies using locally generated technologies, as well as the
importation of environmentally sound technologies to support the country's
development efforts.

217. In addition, effective co-ordination mechanisms are to be developed to link the
private sector, especially in the industrial sector, with science and technology
institutions to promote demand-driven research and thus increase the income generating
capacities of these institutions.

218. The current initiative for partial commercialisation of some institutes of the
Council for Scientific and Industrial Research will be extended to all the other Institutes of
the Council. The Programme will also be extended to the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission,
to make it possible for the institution to engage in the commercialisation of some of its
activities.

219. Government will also promote small-scale on-farm technologies through which farmers can
process and thus add value to their agricultural produce to promote food security
and stability in the price of produce.

220. Government will enforce Environmental Impact Assessment as a management tool to
ensure that environmental concerns are mainstreamed into the country's development
programmes so that the integrity of the environment can be maintained. Public
institutions will be encouraged to establish environmental desks to ensure that the
environmental impact of policies are mainstreamed into their development agenda.

221. Action will continue on the development of the Greenbelt around the Greater Accra
conurbation to control the growth of urban development in the Region. Land use plans for
10 Regional and District capitals would also be prepared to guide development activities in
these urban areas.

222. Regular reporting systems and quarterly briefing sessions (regular monitoring) would be
organized to ensure that implementation of Government policies and programmes are on
schedule. This would also ensure that resources are used not only for the intended
purposes but also efficiently.

223. An amount of �85.08 billion has been provided to cater for these activities.

Ministry of Lands, Forestry and Mines

224. In keeping with the Presidential Sessional address, the Ministry will pursue
legislative reforms to review, update, harmonise and consolidate all existing laws and
policies on land, forestry, wildlife and minerals to make them more relevant and
applicable to our current and future needs. New strategies for effective law enforcement
will be adopted and implemented to achieve the conservation goals of the Ministry. New
legislation will be enacted to require stool, skin, clan, family and other landowners to
survey and demarcate boundaries of their lands with the approval of the Survey Department.

225. With full participation of traditional and
customary land owners, the Ministry will undertake a tenurial reform and pursue
alternative conflict resolution mechanisms, using negotiations to resolve and minimise land
disputes.
226. Promotion will be given to the productionof industrial minerals to balance the economy's
over reliance on precious minerals. Valueaddition will also be encouraged.

227. The participatory resource management initiatives will be further strengthened to
increase the involvement of land owners and fringe communities bordering the resources in
decisions that affect their interests.

228. To enable the Ministry implement these activities an amount of �123.04 billion has
been programmed for 2001.

Ministry for Private Sector Development

229. An amount of �1.56 billion has been allocated to the Ministry to coordinate and
initiate policies towards private sector development.

INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES SECTOR

Ministry of Roads and Highways

230. In line with the objective of clearing the backlog of road maintenance, priority will
continue to focus on maintenance and rehabilitation works based on objective
assessment of the maintenance needs of the road network. The Ministry will also focus on
maintaining broad equity among geographical locations in view of the limited resources to
satisfy all the justifiable needs of various communities.

231. The following trunk roads, which are being constructed, will be continued:

i. Sogakope-Adidome-Ho-Fume
ii. Bole-Bamboi
iii. Kpandu-Worawora
iv. Wenchi-Sampa
v. Tamale-Yendi

232. Rehabilitation will soon commence on the following roads:

i. Accra-Yamoransa
ii. Achimota-Apedwa-Bunso-Anyinam
(or Achimota-Anyinam)
iii. Tema-Sogakope
iv. Kumasi-Techiman
v. Axim Junction-Tarkwa
vi. Bibiani-Abuakwa
vii. Takoradi-Agona Junction
viii. Gyato Zongo-Yeji
ix. Anyinam- Konongo-Kumasi

233. The following feeder road projects would be continued:

i. Surfacing of Ekye-Amanfrom-Amankwakrom
ii. Improvement to Kwamepong Nkwanta-Dunkusen
road in the Afram Plains
iii. Surfacing of Huhunya-Boti falls
iv. Surfacing of Sokode-Bame
v. Rehabilitation of Dzolo-Kpedze Todze
vi. Rehabilitation of Dadieso-Kwasuo-
Frantaline
vii. Rehabilitation of Wiase-Yiziisi-Tantala
viii. Rehabilitation of Gbindire-Nabule

234. Under the DFID projects, the construction of the remaining 28 bridges will be continued
in the Western and Central Regions.

235. On urban roads, the Ministry intends to:

� Resurface, reseal and rehabilitate about
211 kilometres of roads in the urban centres;

� Commence the rehabilitation of Adeambra
and Inchaban Roads in Sekondi; and

� Commence the rehabilitation of Tema Mahean
and VALCO roads and construct a new motorway
underpass to Ashaiman.

236. It is expected that an amount of �326.4 billion will accrue to the road fund for the
implementation of these maintenance projects. A further amount of �373.95 billion will be
made available for further construction work in this sector. Out of this amount, the Donor
community is expected to contribute �286.21 billion.

Ministry of Works and Housing

237. An amount of �325.54 billion has been allocated to enable the Ministry to commence
new projects and continue its existing projects and programmes during this fiscal year.

238. Some projects expected to benefit from this fund include:

� The Keta Sea Defence Project;

� The Korle Lagoon Ecological Restoration
Project;
and

� Other critical coastal protection works at
Nkontompo, Ada, La and the Osu-Castle.

239. Rehabilitation of the water supply systems at Kpong, Weija, Barekese, Tamale, Winneba,
Koforidua, and Cape Coast will continue.

240. In order to sustain the provision and maintenance of rural water and sanitation
facilities, the Ministry will in this year:

� Construct 660 new boreholes, 350 new hand-
dug wells, 40 mechanized community pipe
systems, 30 new gravity pipe systems, 1,300 new
household latrines, and 100 institutional
latrines;

� Rehabilitate 100 boreholes; and

� Train 400 area mechanics and 100 artisans
to manage rural water and sanitation
facilities.

241. The Ministry is to embark on a special housing package "Housing the People Scheme"
which will focus on low-income housing, urban renewal and Rural Housing.

242. Under the scheme:

� A home ownership mortgage insurance will
be established;

� The Ministry will step up its facilitation
role with emphasis on land acquisition and
provision of basic infrastructure facilities to
support housing development;

� A US$50million loan package for
construction finance is being sourced for the
members of the Ghana Real Estate Developers
Association to increase housing for both rental
and home-ownership. This is expected to create
over 30,000 jobs;

� Another US$50 million loan package is
being sourced for land servicing development
and construction of rental and homeownership
housing; and

� An innovative approach to house the
security agencies has been conceived by the
Ministry and this will form part of the overall
housing programme.

SOCIAL SERVICES SECTOR

Ministry of Education

243. Recognising the importance of social programmes to the broad mass of the Ghanaian
populace, the Government has allocated an amount of �1,420.22 billion to the sector for
the 2001 fiscal year.

244. Basic Education continues to be a major priority of the Government and the fCUBE
Programme will be sustained. Delivery of quality education will serve as a platform for
enrolment enhancement in Schools. Emphasis will be placed on enhancement programmes aimed at
bridging the gap between rural and urban sections of society. The programme of
activities to be pursued during the fiscal year will be as follows:

� Organisation of community participation in education
delivery;

� School inspection;
� In-service training for teachers;
� Provision of teaching and learning
materials;
� Provision of incentives for teachers;
� Curriculum review and development; and

� Financial support for proven needy basic
school girls.

245. In pursuance of quality teaching and learning under the fCUBE programme, a Whole
School Development (WSD) concept has been designed to improve classroom environment and
management. In line with the WSD concept, teachers are being exposed to current
methodologies and skills. This is to improve on children's literacy, numeracy and problem
solving skills. Under this programme 20,000 teachers at the Basic level will be trained
this year.

246. For the year 2001, policies and programmes for the continuous improvement in girl child
education will be vigorously pursued. To this end, an amount of �6.41 billion has been
provided to support girl child education programmes in primary schools. Additionally, an
amount of �413.8 million has also been provided in 2001 for the girl child to conduct Science,
Technology and Mathematics Education (STME) programmes at the Senior Secondary School
level.
247. Government will focus attention on provision of infrastructural facilities in
schools, especially in rural areas and expand the existing system. In connection with this,
the following programmes will be pursued:

� Rehabilitation/construction of school
infrastructural facilities;

� Provision of teacher housing;

� Procurement of classroom furniture;

248. A total amount of �47 billion has been provided to improve facilities in Basic Schools
throughout the country. An amount of �21 billion has been allocated to improve and
expand the existing Senior Secondary Schools. This is to provide placement for the increasing
number of JSS products.

249. The study of Technical/Vocational subjects to satisfy the demands of the industrial sector
of the economy is being given the desired attention. Technical/ Vocational Education
Curriculum is being reviewed and developed. The current arrangement of linking Technical
Institutes to industrial establishments will be given the needed attention. A total of �4
billion has been provided for the completion of 20 Vocational and Technical Resource Centres
(VOTEC). The VOTEC project is to address the problem of non-availability of modern equipment
and plant facilities for the Institutions and to improve skills of students.

250. In accordance with the Government policy
of decentralisation, 60 Districts have been completely decentralised and are being assisted
with District Education Planning Teams. The remaining 50 Districts will be covered in the
course of the fiscal year when they have been assessed. To ensure transparency and
accountability at all levels of management, the institution of Performance Agreements for all
Cost Centres will be strengthened.

251. Drug abuse, alcoholism, and the scourge of HIV/AIDS as well as other Sexually Transmitted
Diseases (STDs) have given impetus to our school health policy. A programme is being
initiated to provide health services to schools. The initiative will cover nutrition
programmes, developing monitoring systems for HIV/AIDS and designing disease surveillance
programmes. An amount of �1.1 billion has been provided to support school health programmes.

252. At the tertiary level, various construction projects have been earmarked for
commencement, continuation or completion.
These include:

� The chemistry block at the University of
Ghana, Legon which has been earmarked for
completion at a cost of $1,425,271.22 or �9.98
billion. When completed, the University will
be able to admit many more science students so
as to achieve the 60/40 policy in favour of
science-based programmes in the University;

� Construction of lecture halls at the
University of Cape Coast, University College of
Education of Winneba and the University for
Development Studies, Tamale will be embarked
upon to enhance the admission of more students.
An amount of �750 million is provided for this
purpose. An amount of �100 million has been
allocated for the improvement of water systems
at UDS, Tamale;

� The on-going construction and
rehabilitation of classroom blocks and hostels
in the polytechnics will be continued to enable
them expand access. Special attention will be
given to the newly established polytechnics at
Wa and Bolgatanga to enable them admit fresh
students in October this year. An amount of
�250 million is provided for the construction
of 6-unit classroom block at Bolga Polytechnic
and �100 million for Administration block at Wa
Polytechnic; and

� A total amount of �450 million has been
earmarked for KNUST to carry out
construction/rehabilitation works on lecture
theatres for Engineering, Pharmacy and
Institute for Mining and Mineral Engineering
(MME).

253. The funding of education delivery in the country has been a major constraint in the
Education Sector. The establishment of the Ghana Education Trust Fund is to ensure
sustainable funding of education. It is envisaged that an amount of �358.3 billion will
be realized in the year 2001. The fund would be operationalised to provide financial support
for the development and maintenance of essential academic facilities and
infrastructure; provide supplementary funding for the grant of scholarships to gifted but
needy students; to support the operation of the student loan scheme; to train brilliant
students as members of faculties and to undertake research and other academic
programmes of relevance to national development.

254. In this regard, adequate measures would be put in place to ensure that the Fund is
independently and efficiently managed.

Ministry of Health

255. The thrust for year 2001-2003 will focus on expanding coverage and improving the quality
of health services. In this regard, particular attention will be given to human resource
development, especially staff motivation; improving financial access to care through the
promotion and establishment of a health insurance system. A health insurance fund is
to be established this year towards the realisation of this goal. Focus will also be
on the control and eradication of some selected disease problems including HIV/AIDS, malaria,
tuberculosis and guinea worm.

256. The Ministry of Health will improve coverage and quality of health service to a
larger population as well as strengthen and support population control activities, improve
inter-sectoral collaboration and increase resource mobilization.

257. The issues of surveillance and monitoring of outbreaks of diseases as well as efficiency
demands a modernisation of the information transfer network in the Ministry to more
efficiently care for the Health of the nation. Therefore, an info-technetworking of the
Ministry to the regions and districts will be

258. For the implementation of these programmes, a total budget of �422.22 billion
is provided of which �158.29 billion goes to personal emoluments, �183.83 billion to non-
wage recurrent and �80.09 billion to investment.

259. The Sector's priority targets for 2001 are to get 68 per cent of children fully immunized
against the six killer childhood diseases, achieve 45 per cent supervised delivery, 15 per
cent contraceptive prevalence and attain 0.4 OPD attendance per capita.

260. Intensified efforts will be made to achieve the following targets by the end of the
year:

� Infant mortality rate of 50 per 1000 live
births;
� Under five mortality rate of 100 per 1000;
� Per capita utilization of health
facilities of 0.5; and
� Tuberculosis Cure rate of 85 per cent.

261. At the sub-district level, the focus will be on increasing access to health and more
importantly ensuring equity in the distribution of health facilities at the lower level. To
this end, 33 New Health Centres will be constructed and equipped at various locations
of the country with Government contributing �3.24 billion. Similarly, 45 health centres
have been slated for rehabilitation for the year 2001. In all 60 existing health centres
have been targeted for re-equipping.

262. During the year, the Government intends to upgrade 12 Health Centres to District Hospitals
at the cost of �8.25 billion. These include Ejura, Dodowa, Wassa Akropong, Nyinahin, Kumasi
Metro, Asamankese, Begoro, Nkwanta, Juabeso, New Edubiase and Bimbilla.

263. In addition, 21 existing District Hospitals and 9 Polyclinics have been earmarked
for rehabilitation for effective implementation of the policy of 24 Hour Health Service in the
country.

264. At the regional level, the construction of a new hospital will be completed in Sunyani.
Two existing regional hospitals will also undergo some major refurbishment. These are
Koforidua and Tamale. Minor rehabilitation will be undertaken on three (3) regional hospitals.
This is an attempt to provide the support for increased student intake and more importantly
turn out the requisite manpower required to Training Institutions in the country have been
earmarked for rehabilitation.

265. Various departments have been slated for rehabilitation. These are Medical Block,
Children's Block, Central OPD and Allied Surgery at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital and
Obstetrics and Gynaecologist Consulting Rooms, Maternity and Children's Ward and Offices for
Surgeons at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital.

266. Under the Sucomex II Project, 64 hospitals have been earmarked for re-equipping.

267. In recognition of the fact that a majority of Ghanaians patronize traditional medicine,
the Ministry's policy direction is towards the establishment of traditional medicine alongside
allopathic, western orthodox, medicine. Effective collaboration will be established to
foster the promotion and development of a
traditional health care system. The Centre for Scientific Research into Plant Medicine
(CSRIPM) will play a key role in this effort.
268. Following a recent review, it was agreed that the health policy goals are best served by
a multi scheme health insurance system to replace the cash and carry system. Details of
this system are being worked out. This is in line with His Excellency the President's
directive in the Sessional Address.

269. In addition to all of the above, four specific areas of service delivery would be
emphasised for priority attention. These are:

� HIV/AIDS/STDs;
� Malaria;
� Guinea Worm; and
� Tuberculosis.

270. An amount of �6 billion has been earmarked for these activities.

271. The provision made for Ministry of Health is �422.22 billion for this year.

272. An amount of �12 billion has been allocated for free medical care for pregnant
women, the aged and other vulnerable groups in the society as well as accident victims who
require emergency treatment.

Ministry of Manpower Development and Employment

273. The Ministry's initiatives continue to be focused on addressing the national unemployment
situation which has seen consistent change for the worse on a year to year basis. The
strategic approach employed by the Ministry for employment generation has included efforts to
improve the labour market information system, and labour productivity through policy
formulation and review. In addition to these, the promotion of access by the disadvantaged
and vulnerable to social services occupied the attention of the Ministry.

274. For the year 2001, the Ministry has been allocated an amount of �19.95 billion to
implement its programmes and projects. The following programmes will constitute the
Ministry's special areas of focus:

� Laying before Parliament of the draft
Labour Bill for approval to pave the way for
the establishment of a Labour Commission and
the devolution of industrial relations
authority from the domain of Government;

� Strengthening and developing the
Employment Information Branch (EIB) of the
Labour Department into a National Labour
Statistics Centre in order to improve the
collection, analysis and dissemination of
labour statistics in Ghana;

� Establishment of a National
Productivity Council to serve as a
consultative, consensus gathering and policy
making body which will drive a proposed
National Productivity Movement;

� Submission to Cabinet for scrutiny of
the draft National Occupational Safety and
Health Policy and legislation which seek to
promote a safer and healthier working
environment for our working population; and

� Collaborate with existing stakeholder
institutions to develop a manpower development
and utilisation plan for Ghana.

Ministry of Youth and Sports

275. In recognition of the vital role that the Ministry plays in our National development
effort, an amount of �16.95 billion has been provided in this year's budget to undertake its
programmes and projects.

276. The Government recognizes as one of its foremost problems, the increasing spate of
unemployment among the youth. In order to solve this problem, youth self-employment training
programmes will be organised to develop the requisite entrepreneurial skills among the
young people to create jobs for themselves. Programmes and projects for the youth will
include:

� Construction work on the Wassa Amenfi
Youth Leadership Training Institute in the
Western Region will be completed;

� Work will begin on a ninth Leadership
Institute at Nalerigu;

� Government will establish a Distance
Education Programme for Youth development in
collaboration with the Commonwealth Youth
Programme, Africa Centre at the Institute of
Adult Education, University of Ghana Legon to
award a Diploma in Youth Development Work to
participants/students; and

� Work on a Multi-purpose office complex
which will house the NYC Headquarters will
continue. An amount of �400 million has been
earmarked for the project.

277. The following sports programmes will be implemented:

� A total of �1.07 billion has been provided
for the improvement of sports infrastructure.
An additional amount of �1.85 billion has also
been provided to promote mass sport in order to
improve the health and fitness of Ghanaians;

� An amount of �500 million has been
approved for improvement of facilities at the
Kumasi and Accra Sports Stadia; and

� A further �550 million has been allocated
for improvement of facilities at other league
centres.

278. Provision of �7.04 billion has been made to enable Ghana host the Africa Cup of Nations
Netball Competition expected to take place this year and participate in the following
activities:

i. Black Stars participation in the
qualifying series of the Africa Cup of Nations
and FIFA World Cup;

ii. The National Women team's participation in
the qualifying series of the Africa
Championship and World Cup; and

iii. Black Satellites' participation in the CAF
Under-20 Youth Tournament in Ethiopia.

279. Talent hunting for young and budding sportsmen and sportswomen will be intensified
through the organization of Regional and National Competitions and the potentials so
identified given systematic training and the necessary encouragement to enable them win
laurels for the country.

280. An amount of �569.99 million has been provided for upgrading the skills of Sports
Administrators and Coaches as well as facilities at the National Sports College, in
Winneba.
Ministry of Transport and Communications

281. The policy direction of the Ministry of Transport and Communications shall continue to
be the creation of an enabling environment for the investment and development of the sector.
In the area of communications, Government will in the course of the year focus attention on
the development of information technology and its application to education, agriculture and
industry among others in the country.

282. In the area of software development, it is the Government's position that this should be
pursued in a manner that will make our strengths and capabilities amply demonstrated
on the international market and shall utilise our cultural symbolism as much as possible. In
furtherance of this policy, Government shall encourage the production of locally assembled
personal computers, software and accessories for the Ghanaian market. To ensure a ready
market, Ministries, public organisations and educational institutions shall be encouraged to
make provision for local preference in any tender processes as it applies to consultancy
and construction contracts. In addition, the Ministry shall as much as possible use local
consultants or shall give preference to joint ventureship between expatriate and local firms
in consultancy assignments.

283. The Ministry shall also follow up on the restructuring of the Ghana Broadcasting
Corporation and the acquisition of satellite communications for its television and FM radio
transmission.

284. Government will improve the equipment and infrastructural base of all meteorological
services throughout the country to be able to analyse and forecast as well as improve the
human resource capacity to enhance increased productivity.

285. On the telecom sector, Government shall encourage all operators to achieve set targets
as provided for in their respective licenses and shall require the introduction of various
value added services to really reflect the fact that telecommunication is an important
component of private sector development.

286. In line with His Excellency the President's Sessional Address, the Ministry
will formulate programmes that will enable some mass transport services to become operational
by end of 2002. In this regard, the Ministry will in the course of the year encourage the
private sector to import large occupancy buses for mass transportation. In addition,
prospective foreign investors will be encouraged to team up with Ghanaians to operate
mass transport services.

287. For the implementation of all these programmes, an amount of �37.01 billion has
been provided for the Ministry.

Ministry of Women's Affairs

288. As indicated in His Excellency the President's Sessional Address, Government has
established a new Ministry of Women's Affairs headed by a Minister of Cabinet rank.

289. This Ministry will champion the cause of Ghanaian women and children through the
promotion of gender equality and child development in order to achieve economic,
social, cultural, health and educational empowerment.

290. To achieve this objective, a budget allocation of �6.99 billion has been provided
for the MOWA for the year 2001.

291. Some of the major activities to be undertaken by the Ministry are:

� Establish Ghana Women Centres and Children
Centres in all the 10 Regions at District and
Village levels at an estimated budget of �1 billion.

� Establish Micro Financing Fund with an
initial estimated capital of US$3m to be
sourced from donors/development partners; and

� Renovate and re-furbish the old American
Embassy building for use as offices of the
MOWA.

PUBLIC SAFETY SECTOR

292. The main objective of the Government over the medium term will be as follows:

� the protection of the territorial
integrity of Ghana and its democratic system;

� maintenance of the security agencies in a
high state of preparedness in the promotion of
peace and stability in the country;

� ensuring the neutrality of members of the
security agencies; and

� ensuring adequate protection of life and
property as well as detection and prevention of
crime.

293. For Public Safety, an amount of �502.59 billion has been programmed to be spent this
year.

Ministry of Justice

294. The Ministry will continue to deliver its services as the principal source of legal
advice to the state in the transparent and professional manner, and would uphold the
letter and spirit of the Constitution and the laws of the Republic to entrench further
democracy, respect for human rights and the rule of law at the very core of the nation's
body politic, thereby promoting peace,
stability and good governance. It will undertake a thorough revision of the laws on
our statute books where necessary, to realize these objectives.

295. In line with the Government's objective to ensuring zero tolerance of corruption, the
Ministry will actively promote and support measures instituted to prevent the commission
of white colour crime. It will act decisively in collaboration with the Ministry of the
Interior, that is the Police, CHRAJ, the proposed Office of Accountability and other
agencies to ensure public accountability in the utilization of the nation's resources.

296. The Ministry will accelerate the pace of the implementation of the Legal Sector Reform
Programme in its bid to create a more credible, responsive and effective legal system to ensure
increased efficiency and minimise delay in the administration of justice.

297. For the Ministry of Justice, an amount of �23.07 billion has been allocated for its
activities for 2001.

298. Major capital expenditures for the MDA this year will include:

� The construction of the Law House to
accommodate the Attorney General's Department,
the Legal Aid Board and the Law Reform
Commission;

� The continuation of the following
projects: the library complex for the Ghana
School of Law; the Head Office building of the
Serious Fraud Office and its zonal offices; and
the 12 Regional and 12 sub Regional Offices of
the Attorney-General's Department in Accra,
Sekondi, Kumasi, Sunyani and Ho;

� The provision of logistics support for the
Attorney-General's Department, the legal Aid
Board, the Law Reform Commission and the
Council for Law Reporting;

� The completion of the office block
extension and the erection of two additional
floors to the existing front office of the
Registrar-General's Department; and

� Assistance in the mechanization of court
processes and activities.

Judicial Service

299. The main objectives of the Judicial Service are to promote the rule of Law,
transparency, efficiency and a faster administration of Justice.

300. In this regard the major policies outlined for this service will include the following:

� Promoting an efficient and
impartial system of judicial administration;

� Providing an efficient, honest and
independent forum for the resolution of commercial
and investment disputes to facilitate a free enterprise and
market-oriented system; and

� Protecting human and private property
rights.

301. An amount of �38.08 billion has been earmarked for the Service's activities for the
year 2001.

302. The Service will pursue the following projects in the year:

a. Refurbishment of 5 court registries and 14
Court rooms in Accra, Tema and Kumasi at a cost
of �2.56 billion;

b. Continuation of phase II of the New
Administration Block in Accra at a cost of �2.5
billion;

c. Establishment of 5 special Courts at
�377.4 million in Accra, Kumasi and Takoradi;

d. Rehabilitation of existing Court rooms and
bungalows at Wa, Bawku, Bolgatanga, Tamale,
Kumasi and Koforidua;

e. As a part of the Judicial Sector Reform
Programme, an amount of �991.67 million has
been programmed as GOG counterpart funding to
effectively reduce the backlog of cases in the
Circuit Courts and Tribunals; and also
mechanise 66 Superior Court rooms and 37
Registries.

Ministry of Defence

303. The main policy thrust of the Ministry over the medium term will be to:

� Enhance the efficiency and combat
readiness of active service personnel through
the implementation of improved training to
facilitate the career progression programmes of
personnel;

� Explore in conjunction with the personnel
of the armed forces the possibility of defining
an additional new role for the Forces. In this
vein, the Government will tap the rich
organisational ability, technical skills and
the discipline of the forces to deal with major
developmental problems such as poverty and
illiteracy; and

� Ensure that a larger percentage of the
funds generated through peace keeping
activities is paid to the troops to boost
morale.

304. An amount of �231.74 billion has been earmarked for the Ministry of Defence for its
activities for the year 2001.

305. For the year 2001, the Ministry will embark on the refitting of naval ships at the
Sekondi Naval Base.

306. Government's commitment to UNAMSIL operations will continue this year.

307. To ensure the safety of aircraft, a provision of �9.0 billion has been made for the
continuation of their maintenance.

308. A provision of �4.0 billion has been made for the continuation of the Armed Forces
Housing Project.

309. For effective and efficient communication, an allocation of �5.0 billion has been made for
the commencement of the Burma Camp Exchange Project this year.

Ministry of the Interior

310. The thrust of policy for the Ministry of the Interior will be the maintenance of law and
order as well as the detection and prevention of crime.

311. Some of the policies for the Ministry of the Interior for the medium term are:

� Protection of life and property;

� Prevention and detection of crime;

� Accelerated recruitment into the
Police Service with the view of achieving a
ratio of policemen to population of 1:1000;

� Continued retraining of service
personnel in all agencies to enhance
efficiency; and

� Improvements in logistics/equipment
holding of Agencies under the Ministry.

312. A provision of �203.82 billion has been made for the Ministry for the year 2001.

313. In recognition of the important role Police play in crime control and the
maintenance of law and order, the following activities will be undertaken in this financial
year:

� The Police will recruit and train a total
of 1,000 personnel by the end of the year to
meet the challenges facing the service;

� As part of its programme to ensure
adequate protection of life and property, the
Police Service has been allocated an amount of
�1.4 billion for the purchase of equipment and
other logistics to enhance their operations;

� The Criminal Investigation Department
(CID) has been allocated an amount of �1.39
billion to enable the Department acquire modern
crime prevention/detection equipment and
vehicles to increase their effectiveness; and

� An amount of �6 billion has been made
available to the Police Service to complete on-
going projects and rehabilitate various
Stations and Barracks nationwide.

return to top

SECTION SIX: POLICY INITIATIVES FOR 2001

314. Mr. Speaker, the problems of the economy in the last 2 years have shown how weak and
fragile the economic fundamentals are and hence the inability of the economy to withstand
adverse external shocks.

315. Government will initiate policies and programmes to address the problems of
continuous decline in economic growth rates; rising unemployment; an accelerating inflation
rate coupled with rising interest rates which is stifling production; an unmotivated private
sector; the deteriorating position of the cedi against the major currencies; and a huge
Government debt and fiscal deficit. Government will tackle these problems in order to bring a
positive change in the lives of Ghanaians through "the wealth creation programme".

Public Finance Management

316. Government is disturbed by the impunity with which the financial regulations are being
violated either through acts of commission or omission resulting in the abuse of state
resources. It is important to draw attention to the Government's avowed declaration of a
zero tolerance for all acts of corruption.

317. I wish to serve notice of my determination to ensure that all financial regulations are
scrupulously enforced. I therefore wish to urge all my colleagues to ensure that agencies
under them strictly comply with the Financial Regulations and all other directives.

318. To improve the integrity of Government payrolls, Heads of Management Units are
required to confirm the existence of their staff by signing the relevant portion of the
payroll monthly. Heads of Management Units who fail to comply with these directives will be
sanctioned. Furthermore, the Controller and Accountant-General's Department will conduct
payroll audit to ensure compliance and elimination of ghost names.

319. Government is committed to strengthening public finance management. It will therefore
ensure that:

� Internally generated funds that hitherto did not get into the
Consolidated Fund are lodged into the Fund as required by law;

� There is value for money in the execution of projects and other Government
activities. To this end, all MDAs are expected to audit and review all existing contracts, the
supply of goods and services including consultancies with the view to ensuring
transparency and accountability. The Attorney- General and Minister of Justice will assist
appropriately;

� Agents that collect tax revenues on behalf of Government such as the Ghana Private
Road Transport Union (GPRTU) pay all such monies into the Consolidated Fund;
� The budgeting, expenditure monitoring
and control, accounting and treasury functionsin the Ministry of Finance are strengthened.

320. As part of measures to control and eliminate the payment of unapproved allowances,
subvented organizations will be required to submit the previous month's actual payroll to
the Controller and Accountant-General before the current month's release is effected. In
addition to this, all subvented agencies will have their votes for salaries transferred into
separate accounts at the Bank of Ghana. As a general proposition, Government has decided to
remove all regulatory bodies from the list of subvented agencies and explore alternative
measures for their financial support.

321. Government is committed to reducing the country's domestic debt, whose interest payment
now constitutes about 15 per cent of the entire Government expenditure. For the year 2001,
Government will reduce its borrowing from the domestic market. In place of this, Government
will consult its development partners in an attempt to secure long term financing to
support the budget. Divestiture proceeds will be used to pare down the central Government
stock of domestic debt.

322. Government is deeply committed to the restoration of expenditure monitoring and
commitment control, not only to support fiscal discipline but also to ensure that the use of
scarce Government and donor resource is properly prioritized and accounted for.
Towards this end, Government has decided to establish an Economic Policy Co-ordination
Committee at the Ministerial and Technical levels to include officials from key Ministries
and the Bank of Ghana. This Committee will be operational by 31st March, 2001.

323. Government will carry out a financial audit of road arrears with a view to
determining that value is obtained for money to be spent.

Divestiture and the Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC)

324. Government has decided to continue the Divestiture Implementation Programme as a sign
of its commitment to the development of the private sector. However, in view of the public
outcry on the manner in which properties of the state were divested, Government has decided to
carry out financial and managerial audit of the DIC as an institution.

325. Furthermore, Government will audit and review some divested companies whose
divestiture may have been tainted with corruption and fraud with the view to
ascertaining how transparent the exercise was with respect to pricing, modes of payment and
procedures used in taking over the assets of the companies.

326. A clear aggressive programme of divestiture reform will be pursued, which will
limit the role of the Government in the economy, reinforce the private sector and
facilitate the mobilization of donor programme support. The Government will come out with its
divestiture programme for the fiscal year 2001 by the end of April, 2001.

Finance and Management Audit

327. Mr. Speaker, as a demonstration of our commitment to a transparent strategy to deal
with the debt of parastatal enterprises, there will be a thorough financial and management
audit of certain institutions including the following institutions with a view to improving
on transparency, minimizing corruption and ensuring accountability:

� Ghana National Petroleum Corporation
(GNPC);
� Bulk Oil Storage and Transport (BOST);
� Tema Oil Refinery (TOR);
� Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG)
Limited;
� Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL);
� Timber Export Development Board (TEDB);
� Social Security and National Insurance
Trust
(SSNIT);
� State Insurance Company (SIC) Limited;
and
� Vanef/STC

328. Government will appoint a committee to come out with recommendations for the
restructuring of these institutions themselves and their respective debt obligations after the
completion of the financial audit.

Tax Reliefs

329. Mr. Speaker, with the Income Tax Law (Act 592, 2000) in place, the following reliefs have
become effective:

� Personal Basic Relief

- With effect from January this year,
the minimum taxable personal income
has been raised from �900,000.00 to
�1,200,000.00.

- The top marginal tax rate of 35 percent applicable to
incomes in excess of �17.4 million
is now applicable to incomes in
excess of �48.0 million.

� Reduction in Top Marginal Tax Rates

- The top marginal rates for employees
and the self-employed have further
been reduced from 25 per cent to 20
per cent for the middle upper income
groups and from 35 per cent to 30 per
cent for the upper income groups.

� Other Reliefs

- An individual with a dependant
spouse or at least two dependant
children - �300,000.00 per annum
(marriage/children's relief);

- A disabled person engaged in a
business or employment - 25 per cent
deduction from his assessable income
(disabled person's relief);

- Any person of or above the age of 60
years is entitled to �300,000.00 per
annum as relief from any business or
employment (old age relief);

- A relief of �240,000.00 per annum is
granted any person sponsoring the
education of his child or ward in any
recognized registered education
institution (children's education
relief) limited to 3 children;

- An individual is allowed a relief of
�500,000.00 in respect of cost of
training, which updates or improves
his professional, technical or
vocational skills (training cost
relief).

330. Mr. Speaker, I will like to mention here that the marriage/children's, disabled persons,
old age and children's education reliefs will now be enjoyed upfront through the information
provided by the worker's employer unlike in the past where these reliefs are paid after filing
tax returns.

Revision of Corporate Tax Rates

331. Furthermore, in the new Tax Law (Act 592, 2000) Corporate Tax Rates have been reduced
from 35 per cent to 30 per cent for companies listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange and 32.5 per
cent for unlisted companies.

Withholding Tax

332. The rate of withholding tax has been increased from 5 per cent to 7� per cent.

Rent

333. Even though the law is clear on payment of rent income, not many landlords do so. It must
be emphasized that IRS and the new National Tax Audit Team when formed will enforce the rent law.

Poverty Reduction

334. The establishment of the Poverty Alleviation Fund under the District Assemblies
Common Fund is one of the good initiatives of the NDC Government but its implementation left
much to be desired.

335. The use of the Poverty Alleviation Fund will be integrated into the Poverty Reduction
Strategy of the Government and, where appropriate, the experience and expertise of
the National Board for Small Scale Industries and the Rural Banks will be used to help with
the administration of the Fund to support the small and medium scale enterprises at the
district level. The proper and judicious use of the Poverty Alleviation Fund will generate
employment in all the Districts.

336. Government has been concerned that about 40 per cent of Ghanaians are classified as poor
and about 27 per cent as extremely poor and will therefore pursue policies that will
accelerate the improvement of the welfare of the poor.

337. Government has therefore initiated a
revision of the earlier Policy Focus for Poverty Reduction which will culminate in a new
Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy. This strategy will comprise measures to stabilise the economy
including a debt management policy, a long-term growth and fully costed poverty reduction
programme and projects with greater emphasis on the eradication of extreme poverty for the
period 2002-2004.

338. For the 2001 Financial Year, Government has allocated �1,979.5 billion, representing
31.3 per cent of total discretionary expenditure, to improve access to basic social
services and infrastructure for the poor. About 60 per cent of this allocation is earmarked for
basic education, primary health care and provision of safe drinking water for rural
areas. This is in line with Government policy to reallocate budgetary resources to address
the problem of poverty.

Loan Recovery

339. Mr. Speaker, the Government has made Loan Recovery one of the cardinal objectives of this
year's budget. This Government is determined to ensure that monies borrowed are not regarded
as gifts but funds that must be repaid so that they can be re-channeled to assist other
entrepreneurs.

340. In the past, a large proportion of beneficiaries of such facilities consistently
failed to repay the loans. For example, only 10 per cent of the amount initially loaned out
from the Business Assistance Fund (BAF) has been repaid.

341. Other facilities include bilateral grants
such as those from Canada, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom for which huge amounts are
outstanding.

342. Mr. Speaker, Government hereby directs that all such defaulters should make repayments
of the amounts outstanding against them by the end of May this year, after which time the
Ministry of Finance will compile the list of all such loan defaulters and institute all
available measures to recover the amounts outstanding.

343. All MDAs which have availed themselves of credit facilities at Commercial Banks and other
sources are reminded that they require the prior approval of the Minister of Finance.
MDAs who have obtained such credit facilities are required to regularize these transactions
by 30th April 2001.

344. Banks are reminded that they are not permitted to give credit facilities to MDAs
without the prior approval of the Minister of Finance.

Encouraging Private Savings

345. Government deplores the current procedure for operating savings accounts in some of the
commercial banks within the country. In some cases, initial amounts of not less than
�500,000 are required to enable people open savings accounts. While appreciating the
administrative difficulties in the maintenance of such accounts, Government nonetheless feels
this is a discouraging factor in the efforts to mop up excess liquidity in the system among
others.

346. In this connection, Government will request that commercial banks review the
requirements for operating savings accounts with a view to minimizing the burden on
prospective clients.

Halt on Contract Appointments

347. Ghanaians were informed a few years ago that Government was to put a stop to the
process whereby top public officials, upon reaching their retirement dates, are given
contracts of 1-3 years, renewable, to continue working in the same capacities. It now appears
that this was never implemented.

348. There are still large numbers of such officials in the public service collecting
pensions as well as the salaries they currently earn.

349. This procedure is not helpful to our nation as there is no future for the young
talented individuals who aspire to reach those high positions in time.

350. Henceforth, all such contracts within the public services and State Owned Enterprises
(SOEs) will be limited to medical and para- medical staff as well as University Lecturers,
where it has to be established that the services of such staff are required.

351. All existing contracts for other MDA's will not be renewed upon expiry.

Project Execution

a. Certificate for Commencement of Work

352. To ensure that only projects that have been approved in the budget are implemented,
Government will continue to pursue and deepen the use of the commencement certificate as a
condition for the payment for work executed.

353. All Project Consultants and MDAs are to note that the Ministry of Finance will not
tolerate any interim payment certificate prepared for payment without the commencement
certificate and this includes certificates for consultancies. For the avoidance of doubt, it
should be noted that henceforth all MDAs including the Departments of Feeder and Urban
Roads and the Ghana Highways Authority are to observe this directive on the issuance of
commencement certificate as a pre-requisite for start of work.

b. Donor Supported Projects

354. Contracts under these projects are required to be processed only through the
respective District, Regional and Central Tender Boards. Progress reports are also
required to be submitted to Ministry of Finance before subsequent release of funds are made.

Government Acquired Lands

355. Over the years Government has acquired lands for various developmental purposes for
which there are outstanding payments.

356. In many cases some of these lands have only been partially developed or remained
undeveloped and stand the risk of encroachment.

357. Government will therefore study and list all state acquired lands, indicating their
status with respect to stage of development, compensation payment and current relevance of
the acquisition with a view to formulating policies to deal with the problems associated
with acquisition and compensation.

The Ghana AIDS Commission

358. As part of the concerted effort at stemming the alarming increase in the rate of
HIV/AIDS infections in Ghana, Government has set up the Ghana AIDS Commission. This supra
ministerial and multi-sectoral body has been set up to direct, manage, coordinate, monitor
and evaluate all activities in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Ghana.

359. Specifically, the objective of the AIDS Commission is to reduce the incidence of
HIV/AIDS by 30 per cent by 2005 and improve the quality of life of people living with HIV/AIDS
and people affected by HIV/AIDS.

Private Sector Policies

360. Government recognises that the driving force behind sustainable economic growth is a
more dynamic, innovative and vibrant private sector, which is capable of competing in the
global market. Government will therefore embark on a more productive and integrated
industrial sector policy with the private sector as its focus with the aim of restoring
business confidence in the economy. Appropriate technological innovations will be encouraged to
increase the productivity of investment which is currently low by international standards.

361. It is to address these issues that Government has appointed a Minister of State
for Private Sector Development who will work towards the:

� pursuance of transparent policies;

� elimination of bureaucratic impediments to
both
domestic and foreign investors;

� creation of the necessary framework for
the protection
of property rights and business
contracts;

� retraining and redirection of labour to
productive
activities; and

� establishment of a positive partnership
between
Government and the private sector
in order to uplift
business activity in the economy.

Small Business Services

362. Mr. Speaker, Government recognizes that 'the engine of growth in the free enterprise
economy is small business and self-employment'. In this regard, Government will establish a
company to be called Small Business Services (SBS) Ghana, as a public-private partnership to
support the development and growth of small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs). This company
will cater for start-ups under an Enterprise Agency and Business Network for existing
businesses with growth potential.

363. The SBS Ghana will:

� Establish a one-stop shop to offer advice,
and practical help for start-up and growing
one's own business. This would bring together
all Government initiatives for SMEs under a
strategic direction;

� Provide expertise, advice and support in
management skills;

� Help in nurturing and training young
entrepreneurs to realize their full potential;

� Assist in providing funding for business
start-ups;

� Assist existing businesses with growth
potential to become sub-regional leaders, if
not world-class leaders;

� Set up centers of excellence to develop
our unique natural talents in areas that we
could develop market in the West African sub-
region and other parts of the world;

� Seek to streamline Government legislation
and regulations to aid SMEs; and

� Encourage SMEs to make meaningful use of
Information, Communication, and Technology
(ICT) to add value to their products and
services.

Special Incentive for Value Added Processing of
Cocoa and Gold

364. It is recognized that the special fiscal and other incentives in the mineral and mining
law of 1986 played a pivotal role in stimulating investment and production in the
gold mining sector. The process will be taken a step further. A team will be put together by
the Minister for Private Sector Development to consider and recommend special incentives for
entrepreneurs - local and foreign - willing to go into value added processing of cocoa and
gold.

Revenue Enhancing Measures

365. The problem of revenue collection is not but a problem of corruption, evasion and
misapplication of discretion. For instance,
facts available to the revenue agencies and recommendations from various studies carried
out by some of our development partners and ourselves point to the gross misuse of NGOs
operating in the country. Reports from CEPS indicate the abuse of the mining list and
misapplication of concessions granted under the GIPC.

366. The aim of the Budget is to take pragmatic and drastic methods to address these problems
which have adversely affected revenue levels in the country.

367. The fact that our revenue agencies exceed their targets every year is a clear
manifestation of the wrong assumptions underlying the setting of revenue targets by
these agencies.

368. Government will improve revenue mobilization efforts through a combination of
measures. These include review of the tariff and the exemption regimes as well as an
improvement in the operational capacity of the revenue agencies. Specifically, these measures
will be taken:

Revenue Agencies (Governing) Board

369. Government will ensure that the Revenue Agencies (Governing) Board, established under
Act 585 of 1998 is put in place by 30th April 2001. The Board will be the central governing
body in place of the existing governing boards of the respective national revenue agencies.

Streamlining Procedures for Clearing Goods from the Ports

370. The proliferation of permit issuing institutions leads to undue delays and
increased cost to importers. Under the auspices of the Minister of State for Private Sector
Development, a committee will be set up to assess the possibility of consolidating the
grant of permits in one location to reduce transaction costs and time.

Imposition of VAT on Imported Pharmaceutical
Products

371. In response to the plea of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) for conditions that
create a uniform playing field for local industries, importers of finished
pharmaceutical products as defined under Chapter 30 of the Harmonised System (HS) Code
will now be required to pay 12.5 per cent VAT on the c.i.f. value of their products. The
Minister of Health will provide an exemption list to the Minister of Finance and CEPS for
special drugs such as vaccines. Retailers of pharmaceutical products will, however, continue
to be exempt from VAT registration.

Review of Fees and Charges

372. Fees and charges which were set at certain rates several years ago will be reviewed to
reflect economic rates. In some cases, current rates are below the cost of collecting these
fees and charges. In this connection, Mr. Speaker, I intend to submit to this House the
relevant legislative instrument to amend these fees and charges some of which were established
as far back as 1978.

Appointment of a Games Commissioner

373. Mr. Speaker, the lottery industry is a rich source of revenue mobilization for
investment and development and therefore there is public interest in ensuring its orderly
growth and development. The Government will appoint a Games Commissioner to regulate the
business of lotteries and betting to operate from the Ministry of Finance by the end of May
2001.

374. Mr. Speaker, the Commissioner will be expected to enforce the existing legislation
relating to the lottery industry. The Commissioner will also be responsible for
registering and licensing all lottery operators including the Department of National Lotteries.
The Commissioner will formulate policies and institute measures to prevent fraud and
malpractices in the lottery industry. In addition, he or she will be expected to advise
the Minister of Finance on major policies and measures to resolve conflict and ensure fair
and orderly operation in the industry.

375. All agreements with the Department of National Lotteries relating to the lottery
business which are not yet operational should be suspended until further notice to enable the
Ministry of Finance study their revenue implications.

Review of Tax System

376. Government will review the tax system in order to bring about greater efficiency in
collection, plug loopholes in the system and reduce revenue losses through evasion,
avoidance and corruption. Laws on collection of fees and charges and payment of same into the
Consolidated Fund, which some MDAs have overlooked in the past, will be enforced to
ensure that monies due Government are duly paid into the Consolidated Fund.

Widening of Tax Base

377. Mr. Speaker, as part of measures aimed at widening he tax base, it is proposed to reduce
the VAT threshold from �200 million to �100 million for retailers of goods except retailers
of pharmaceutical products which shall remain exempt.

378. In addition to the above, steps will be taken to provide logistics to the Internal
Revenue Service to enable them deepen the tax
coverage, particularly in urban centres so as to rope in landlords, artisans and traders some
of whom have not been paying taxes on incomes as required by law.

Airport Tax

379. Airport Tax has been increased from US$20 to US$50 with immediate effect. The increase
of US$30 will be paid into the Consolidated Fund.

Establishment of Tax Courts

380. Government through the Ministry of Justice and the Judicial Service will set up and
operationalise Tax Courts to expedite action on tax related issues. These Tax Courts will be
established in every region.

Taxes on Professional Practice

381. Private consultants and persons in professional practice such as lawyers,
architects and engineers, some of whom have hitherto not been paying taxes on their income
are advised to do so. Tax clearance certificates will be required before contracts
are awarded to any professional or consultant by MDAs. MDAs are also required to submit a
list of all contracts awarded to consultants to the IRS and the Ministry of Finance.

Dividend Payment

382. There will be a special exercise to pursue the collection of dividends from companies in
which government has investment and for which payment of dividends has not been made for many
years.

Exemptions

383. During the year 2000, over 22 per cent of our imports were admitted exempt from import
duty. It is proposed that except for goods imported by the Office of the President,
Diplomatic goods and Personal effects all other imports to be admitted exempted from import
duty shall attract a CEPS processing fee of 1 per cent on the c.i.f value.

384. The principle underlying exemptions will be reviewed. In particular:

� All zero-rated imports will now attract a
concessionary duty rate of 5 per cent;

� Gifts of a charitable nature imported by
NGOs under exemptions will be limited to only
health and education. All other items brought
in by any other NGO will attract normal import
duty unless Parliament grants the exemption.

� Exemptions under the Mining List approved
by the Minerals Commission under the Minerals
and Mining Law, 1986 will be restricted to
plant, machinery and equipment. All other
items which are currently exempted under the
Mining List apart from the above will now
attract a concessionary levy of 5 per cent.
Since 1997, CEPS has made recommendation
towards the imposition of this levy. Tax
holidays under GIPC Law, Act 478 will be
reviewed with a view to limiting the tax
holiday to not more than ten years after which
they will start paying normal taxes.

Import Duty on Materials for the Manufacture,Processing of or Prospecting for Timber and
Natural Products

385. Under existing arrangement, materials for the manufacture, processing of or prospecting
for timber products are exempted from import duty.

386. However, a large range of these items is used in areas other than the timber industry.
Monitoring of the facility by CEPS has revealed some level of abuse arising from
misapplication. These items will now attract an import duty of 5 per cent on the c.i.f
value.

Other Revenue Enhancing Measures

387. Other measures envisaged for the enhancement of revenue collection this year
include the following:

� Automation of CEPS warehousing facility to
facilitate monitoring;

� Regular, but unannounced physical
inventory of warehouses;

� Full automation of Customs Procedures, at
the Kotoka International Airport;

� Initiation of a Trade Agreement on Transit
Trade with Togo, Burkina Faso and Cote d'Ivoire
to ensure exchange of information so as to
eliminate revenue leakages;

� Intensification of patrols along the
borders to reduce smuggling; and

� Establishment of a more efficient
operation of the revenue agencies which is
expected to subsequently reduce tax evasion.
In this regard, an integrated National Tax
Audit Team (NTAT) composed of professionals
outside the revenue collecting agencies will be
set up at the Ministry of Finance. This unit
will be equipped to randomly conduct audit of
companies and individuals and will be in place
by 1st May, 2001.

Public Procurement Reform

388. The Government of Ghana, desirous of maximising the gains it made in the Public
Financial Management Reform Programme, has embarked on a complementary reform of public
procurement. The aim of the public procurement reform is to assist in generating budgetary
savings to help the country maximise developmental returns from efficient use of
national economic resources. It is also to enhance the nation's standing in attracting
investments.

389. The public procurement reform entails the streamlining of the system of procurement for
goods, works and services and the establishment of an effective monitoring and tracking system
for tendered, negotiated and sole-sourced contracts for goods, works and services. The
formulation of a national procurement code as well as the establishment of a mechanism for
monitoring compliance with the code is envisaged.

390. These proposals will first be reviewed by the Public Procurement Oversight Group (PPOG)
and subsequently at a national workshop to be held in April 2001.

391. In the meantime all MDAs are expected to
audit and review all contracts for the supply of goods and services including consultancies
with the view to ensuring transparency, accountability and value for money. This
should be done with the advice of the Minister
necessary.

Financial Sector

392. Mr. Speaker, recent developments and the insolvency and subsequent liquidation of three
commercial banks and a number of rural banks do not help the maintenance of public confidence
and hence in assisting the banks' deposit mobilization efforts. To ensure the soundness
of the financial sector, the Government is committed to strengthening the ability of the
Central Bank to supervise the sector, while ensuring that it is the private sector which
owns and manages the institutions in the sector.

393. There is the need for the banks to provide innovative products, adoption of high
professional standards, prompt attention to depositors needs and the shortening of customer
turnaround time to reduce the transaction cost of banking by the public and increase consumer
convenience.

394. To further enhance the operations of the financial system, two new proposed laws, the
Bills and Cheques bill and the Payment System bill, have been prepared and will be laid
before this august House for your consideration.

395. The clearing system also needs further improvements. The effective use of
telecommunications and complete automation of the clearing system would ease the payments
system, expedite the clearing of cheques and encourage public confidence in the use of
cheques.

396. On the payment system itself, tenders will be invited for the installation and operation
of a Real Time Gross Settlement system for high value inter-bank payments. This should come on-
stream in the course of the year. The scheme of accreditation for printers of cheques and other
security instruments will also be pursued this year.

The Insurance Sub-Sector

397. The insurance companies and pensions funds are the basic long-term financial institutions.
They are a vast potential source of long-term savings. If properly managed, these sources
can provide a formidable pool of long-term savings for investment within industry.

398. Indeed, the weak performance of long-term savings institutions coupled with the related
inability of the Ghanaian capital markets to source long-term funds for industry,
agriculture and real estate, is a major source of pressure on medium and short-term financial
institutions like the banks whose real function is to provide working capital, trade finance
and bridging loan facilities.

399. The weak links in the insurance sub-sector needs to be addressed to strengthen its
capacity to mobilize long-term savings. As all efforts are made to stabilize the cedi and
other macro economic variables, the sector
should be able to re-engineer itself to provide the much needed missing link in the national
effort towards economic growth and development.

Over-Aged Vehicles

400. Compliance with the law on over-aged vehicles is improving as fewer of such vehicles
have come in during the last 6 months. However, in order to decongest the ports of
vehicles (older than 10 years) that have been
confiscated under the existing law, and raise revenue, owners of affected vehicles will be
permitted to take custody of them by paying the duties chargeable in addition to a penalty of
�1 million for vehicles below 1700 cc and �3 million for vehicles above 1700 cc and all
commercial vehicles. All such vehicles must be cleared by the end of April 2001 at the current
rate and will take effect from today.

National Reconstruction Levy (NRL)

401. As part of the methods to raise funds to
support the Government during this financial
crisis, the Government is to establish a levy
to be known as the National Reconstruction Levy
to be sourced from banks, pension funds and
insurance companies which will contribute 15
per cent of their gross profits after providing
for bad and doubtful debt during the period
2000-2002.

402. Additionally another levy of 2.5 per cent
of the gross profit before tax of companies
operating in Ghana shall be imposed for a
limited period of time, 2000-2002.

Cocoa Industry

403. During the past two years, the world cocoa market has experienced profound weaknesses,
culminating in world prices plummeting to their lowest in 30 years in December, 2000 when the
price hit a low of �506 per tonne.

404. A combination of factors led to the downward trend in prices. Notable among these
are:

� The disappearance of forward sales in La
Cote d'Ivoire following the full liberalisation
of the cocoa sector in the country;

� Perception of increase in production in La
Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana and Indonesia as a result
of good weather conditions;

� Poor demand for cocoa as a result of the
financial and economic crisis in Asia, Brazil
and the Russian Federations.

� The availability of large stocks of cocoa
beans projected to be 1,082,000 tonnes at the
end of the 1999/2000 season.

� The substitution of 5 per cent vegetable
fat in chocolate products by the European
Union. This is expected to reduce the already
low demand for cocoa products.

405. From these developments the following
measures will be pursued to sustain the cocoa
industry:

� Increased production, particularly yield
per hectare by assisting farmers to
rehabilitate and replant old, abandoned and
destroyed farms in the cocoa growing areas with
high yielding hybrid varieties through the
adoption of productivity enhancing technologies
and increased access to credit;

� Improve the quality control system and
input supplies. Steps will be taken to ensure
that the meager of Cocoa Extension Services
with the Ministry of Agriculture Extension does
not suffer. Quality control responsibility
will be maintained with a public institution;

� Improve the internal and external
marketing of cocoa through competition and
equal access to Cocobod's warehousing and crop
financing facilities;

� Encourage more local processing; and

� Increase producer income.

Bonus Payments to Farmers

406. In line with the cocoa sector reform
strategy worked out with stakeholders, the
Government intends to continue to increase the
farmers' share of cocoa export prices. In the
current crop season, the share will be raised
to at least 65 per cent.

407. Following a review of the projection of
key variables used in the determination of
producer price and other rates for the
2000/2001 main crop season, it has become
necessary to compensate cocoa farmers for the
loss in revenue resulting from these
developments. The compensation will be equally
shared between bonus payment to the farmer and
mass spraying of their cocoa farms.

408. With the payment of this compensation, the
cocoa farmer's share of the f.o.b. price is
restored to 67 per cent. Consequently,
Government has decided to pay to cocoa farmers
a total of �80.38 billion which translates to
an additional �12,406.25 per bag (or
�198,500.00 per tonne) for all purchases made
last season.

Mass Spraying of Cocoa Farms

409. In order to generate employment in the
rural areas and improve the husbandry of cocoa
farms, Government will undertake a national
mass spraying of all cocoa farms before the
next main crop season.

Improvement Works on Selected Cocoa Roads

410. The rehabilitation of some selected cocoa
roads, which are on the primary routes for the
evacuation of cocoa but are in very poor
condition will be rehabilitated by Cocobod. An
amount of �8.1 billion has been earmarked for
this purpose.

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SECTION SEVEN: CONCLUSION

411. As stated by His Excellency the President in his first message to Parliament, "The past
year has been a poor one for our country economically. We were well aware of that
before our inauguration into office. But discovering the depth and extent of our
financial plight since the inauguration on 7th January, has been as shocking as it has been
sobering."

412. In his budget statement last year, the former Minister of Finance, Hon. Kwame Peprah
said and I quote: "Let us all take note, however, that when the economy goes off-course
in an election year, it takes years of belt- tightening and further harsh fiscal measures to
bring it back on course. We must all undertake
to put Ghana first even though it is an election year. Let us all accept that whatever
damage may be done in this election year, the party that wins will find it difficult to
repair it." This is indeed prophetic as we are finding it extremely difficult to repair the
damage the NDC Government has inflicted on the nation as predicted by Hon. Kwame Peprah.

413. Given the current economic malaise that the country finds itself in, the 2001 budget
aims at stabilising the economy for the year. The provisions that Parliament is being
requested to authorise for spending under the programme we have presented to you today,
should be considered as being made subject to one overall condition. They will be
implemented only after we have made firm arrangements for their non-inflationary
financing. We have called this an interim budget because it can only be implemented
subject to the requirement that revenues and expenditures will be held in such a balance as
to avoid the huge budget deficits of the recent past. The over-riding thrust of policy is to
create a sane and sound financial environment. Such an environment is necessary to meet the
needs of both the public and private sectors of the economy: it should enable Ghana move into
the trajectory of high economic growth of which the nation is capable. Two months after taking
office our Government is still uncovering the exact magnitude of various holes and gaps in
the financial position which it has inherited.

414. Just take one example, the NDC Government ended its days by going on an irresponsible
spending spree in the very last quarter of Fiscal Year 2000. The Bank of Ghana suddenly
found that, without any prior agreement or planning, the Government had increased its
overdrawn position from 3 billion at the end of September to about 900 billion by the end of
December. The interest charges that the Government would have to pay if we tried to
regularise that single episode of casual mismanagement by issuing treasury bills to
retire the overdraft would amount to a cool 350 billion in a full year. Just think of the
beneficial investments in social facilities and infrstructure that could be financed with that
kind of money out of the taxes that are paid even by the poorest people, instead of spending
it on interest charges arising from such a mountain of unscheduled spending.

415. All ministries, departments and agencies have already encountered in the Ministry of
Finance a seemingly unsympathetic stonewall against their just requests for money to embark
on important new programmes which they need to undertake in order to make an immediate start
towards fulfilling some major political commitments of our Government. But we have to
move with the utmost caution. So that even with the modest programme presented in this budget,
actual spending will be contingent on the actual inflow of revenues. When the Government
spends money beyond what it has already collected in revenues, then the deficit always
has to be balanced with either getting further loans and grants from outside, or raising
further loans from an already over-stretched domestic capital market through issuing more
and more treasury bills at prohibitive cost, or simply by printing more cedis. It is just
that sort of financial management that steadily eroded the value of our currency,
threatened Ghana's international solvency and fuelled a rampant inflation which is the
cruellest tax on the lives and welfare of the poorest members of society.

416. An enormous hole in the budget will appear if even we only implement the modest spending
proposals that have been admitted into the present Appropriation Bill. That hole could
still amount to as much as 2.6 trillion even if we take into account all the additional
revenues that can be raised from the new taxes that we have regrettably had to levy on all
Ghanaians in this budget. Therefore we have to put a double lock on Government spending until
we have seen the reactions of Ghana's development partners to these initiatives.

417. Accordingly, during the coming six months, the Ministry of Finance will only authorise
payments to the extent of actual receipts of revenues, loans and grants. Statutory payments
will continue to take precedence in these allocations, followed by public service wages
and salaries and related payments. All other expenditures will remain frozen for the time
being. And they will only be unfrozen by specific and express authorisation from the
Ministry of Finance.

418. Certain types of subvented institutions can no longer be supported under the present
stringent financial circumstances. The Government will in due course take steps to
disengage itself from these expenditures. There are others whose functions will be
reviewed with the aim of cutting their size and cost and make some of the institutions focus
properly.

419. That is the sense in which the budget we have presented today should be considered as an
interim budget: I will come back to the House with a more definitive statement of how much we
can spend in the coming months.

420. In assessing the prospective financial
position, we have already taken into account a substantial increase in external assistance
based on commitments that were made principally at the Consultative Group meeting in November
1999.

421. Those commitments suggest that on the basis of the existing programmes, Ghana could
plausibly budget on inflows of aid amounting to US$350 million for fiscal year 2001. This is
far higher than the average inflows of US$220 million per annum received during the past 2
years.

422. But triggering these greatly enhanced inflows is itself dependent upon Government
making precisely the sort of heroic effort to contribute towards closing the gap on the
national budget by stringent measures to restrain spending such as I have proposed to
the House today.

423. Even so, the prospective deficit on the budget that would still remain would amount to
a stubbornly high and unsustainable level of US$330 million this year. These facts have
called for further radical action to try to plug the hole with the assistance of our
development partners.

424. The overall deficit on the budget could have amounted to as much as 8.5 per cent of
Ghana's GDP if we did not take these draconian measures. Every 1 per cent of GDP which we
have to save out of the deficit translates into finding additional resources of �380 billion.
The signal of the goverment's serious intent that our development partners are looking for
is that right from the beginning we should face up to this problem of the hole in the budget.

425. The new petroleum prices that were introduced on February 26, 2001 with the
consent of all the people of Ghana was a first instalment in rationalising the financial
situation. This budget is to be a tool for a national crusade on building a sane and sound
environment for growth in which all Ghanaians are being asked to make sacrifices.

HIPC

426. We need to raise as much cash as we can, so as to be able to satisfy the aspirations of
the people but always on condition that the terms are right for Ghana. Last year, the
servicing of Government's external debt took as much as 9 per cent of all the economic
resources available in the GDP. In addition, 5.3 per cent of Ghana's resources were spent on
domestic interest payments. In cedi terms �3.9 trillion out of a total of �9.9 trillion, that
is one-third of all Government expenditure, was spent on servicing debt. Under the
Appropriation Bill just presented we would have to spend another �4.4 trillion this year in
servicing external debt, and �2.1 trillion on domestic interest payments. Those sums
represent 11.7 per cent and 5.5 per cent respectively of the economic resources that are
forecast to be available in the GDP this year to meet all the public and private needs of our
people.

427. In view of the debt trap in which we find ourselves, debt sustainability analysis carried
out on Ghana and our inability otherwise to raise enough revenue from our own resources or
attract external inflow beyond the presently committed levels, His Excellency, the President
of the Republic of Ghana, has decided that Ghana should take advantage of the HIPC
initiative immediately.

428. His Excellency, the President has further instructed the Minister of Finance to take all
steps necessary to ensure that Ghana gets the full benefit under the HIPC initiative.

429. The measures for controlling the budget deficit which we are proposing by making our
spending authorisations provisional and contingent upon revenue mobilisation should
help to start bringing down domestic interest charges and the negotiations that we are
conducting with our development partners should help bring down the burden of external debt
servicing.

430. Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of Finance will organise a National Economic Dialogue involving
all stakeholders and major players in the economy by the end of April 2001 to look at the
way forward in respect of the Economic Management of the nation. The outcome of this
Dialogue would form an important input for the mid-year budget review.

431. Mr. Speaker, I beg to move.

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SECTION EIGHT: APPENDIX TABLES