Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, Minister of Finance presented the 2025 budget on March 11
The Minister of Finance, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, has outlined measures the government intends to adopt to cut spending and reduce wasteful expenditure.
During the presentation of the 2025 budget on March 11, 2025, he noted that the country is currently burdened with huge debts that need to be managed.
According to him, the government is committed to fixing the economy by ensuring fiscal consolidation and macroeconomic stability.
He outlined the measures as follows:
Mr. Speaker, the following expenditure measures will be implemented in the 2025 fiscal year and the medium-term to support the fiscal consolidation agenda:
i. conduct a comprehensive audit to validate the quantum of arrears/payables and commitments as at 31st December 2024 before payment;
ii. the mandatory use of the “Blanket Purchase Order” to capture multi-year
commitments/contracts in line with MediumTerm Expenditure Framework ceilings;
iii. amend the Public Procurement Act to provide for an Independent Value-for Money Office to scrutinize government procurements above a threshold to be determined by Parliament;
iv. amend the Public Procurement Act to make commencement certificates and budgetary provisions prerequisites for all procurements to be paid by central government;
v. fully integrate GHANEPS with GIFMIS to ensure that only MDAs’ projects and purchase orders that have approved budgets and allotments can obtain procurement approvals;
vi. operationalise the Compliance Desk at the Ministry of Finance to monitor reports on commitments and arrears accumulation to enable them, among others, publish a PFM league table for compliance;
vii. strictly enforce sanctions under sections 96 to 98 of PFM Act for breaches of the PFM Act, especially those that relate to arrears accumulation and commitment control;
viii. cut wasteful expenditures on inefficient and duplicative programmes to reduce expenditure under the fiscal consolidation programme. In this regard, selected expenditure items including the GhanaCARES, the YouStart and the One District One Factory will be eliminated;
ix. reassign the functions of the Development Authorities (CODA, NDA, and MBDA) to the District Assemblies;
x. amend the Petroleum Revenue Management Act, 2011 (Act 815) (PRMA) to allocate all ABFA resources for infrastructure projects;
xi. National Health Insurance Levy (NHIL) will receive full allocation under the Earmarked Funds Capping and Realignment Act, 2017 (Act 947);
xii. the Road Fund will receive full allocation under the Earmarked Funds Capping and Realignment Act, 2017 (Act 947);
xiii. reduce the GNPC’s share of net Carried & Participating Interest (CAPI) from 30% to 15% and fully restore transfers to GNPC under the Earmarked Funds Capping and Realignment Act, 2017 (Act 947);
xiv. amend the Mineral Income and Investment Fund (MIIF) Act to ensure the 80% Mineral Royalties originally maintained by MIIF is transferred to the Consolidated Fund for infrastructure development; and
xv. strengthen social protection through the implementation of new social intervention programmes including the No-Academic-Fee policy for all first-year students in public tertiary institutions under the ‘No-Fees-Stress’ initiative, the Free Tertiary Education for Persons with Disability (PWDs), Free Primary Healthcare, the Ghana Medical Care Trust (MahamaCares), and the Free Sanitary Pads for schoolgirls.
SSD/MA
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