Minority challenges govt over funding of New Economy agenda

THE Minority in Parliament has challenged the government to demonstrate how it intends to finance its proposed New Economy agenda.

According to them, failure by the government to mobilise adequate revenue could turn the programme into another unfulfilled political promise.

It has also demanded full disclosure of companies benefiting from tax incentives under the 24-Hour Economy programme, including the revenue the state has lost through the concessions.

The Ranking Member on Parliament’s Finance Committee, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, who raised the concerns at a press conference in Accra yesterday, said the government must account for its existing policy commitments before introducing new economic interventions in the 2027 Budget.

He argued that the proposed New Economy agenda could suffer the same implementation challenges as the 24-Hour Economy programme if the government failed to address persistent revenue mobilisation shortfalls.

Dr Amin Adam said the economic conditions confronting Ghanaians did not reflect the government’s claims of improvement, citing declining sales among traders, difficulties faced by farmers in finding markets for their produce and reductions in cocoa producer prices.

He also questioned the difference between headline inflation figures and the actual cost of living, saying the reported rate did not adequately reflect the financial pressures on households.

On public sector wages, he criticised the government’s salary adjustments of 10 per cent in 2025 and nine per cent for 2027 and 2028, contrasting them with the nearly 30 per cent increase granted in 2024, when the country was experiencing what he described as an economic crisis.

Dr Amin Adam further questioned the government’s reliance on additional fiscal space under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme to finance the New Economy agenda. Read More.

BY CLIFF EKUFUL

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