Discrepancies in government should stop -
Osafo-Maafo
Deputy Ministers vetting on the ice
Three more ministries get budgetary approval
Discrepancies in government should stop -
Osafo-Maafo
Accra (Greater Accra) 28 March 2001
Mr Yaw Osafo-Maafo, Minister of Finance on Tuesday said efforts are being made to reconcile the end of year figures from the Ministry, Accountant General's Department (AGD) and Bank of Ghana (BOG) to ensure the balancing of government accounts.
He said this is necessary because it has been observed that there are always discrepancies between the releases from the Ministry and what AGD issues and what is actually paid by BOG.
This situation has come about because there is time elapse from assembling all payments from the treasuries.
Mr Osafo-Maafo was reacting to concerns raised in Parliament on the reconciliation of figures involving the three organs of state when he moved for the approval of 139 billion cedis being estimates for the Ministry of Finance.
He said the boards for revenue collecting agencies would be in place by June and wondered why the boards were not established after two years of passing the Revenue Board Act.
He said the government would work on the image building of revenue agencies to ensure that revenue collection exceeds its target, balance income and expenditure to enable the country to stop depending on donor inflows.
"We cannot depend on donor inflows of 90 per cent while only 10 per cent is generated internally. This would have to change. We can't do otherwise".
The House approved 38 billion cedis for the Judicial Service and 23 billion cedis for the Ministry of Justice.
In a report, the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs asked for the retention of internally revenue generated by the Judicial Service as an operational fund.
This is to salvage the service from financial hardships and urged for appropriate legislation to be passed to that effect.
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Deputy Ministers vetting on the ice
Accra (Greater Accra) 28 March 2001
Mr Alban Bagbin, the Minority Leader, on Tuesday said vetting of designated deputy ministers was being put on the ice for proper procedures to be followed.
He said the Appointment Committee could not be plunged into performing its work when the grounds have not been prepared for a thorough work to be done.
Explaining the circumstances surrounding the inability of the committee to start the vetting slated for Tuesday, Mr Bagbin said it was only this morning that they received the curriculum vitae on the nominated deputy ministers.
He said the security services have also been served and that no feed back has been received from them.
The Committee had agreed that following from the hectic work involved in the approval of budgetary estimates for the various ministries the vetting should be done during parliamentary recess, which comes off on Friday.
Mr Bagbin said while this arrangement was agreed upon it was surprising to learn from the media that the vetting was to come on today.
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Three more ministries get budgetary
approval
Accra (Greater Accra) 28 March 2001
Parliament on Tuesday approved the budget estimates for the Ministries of Lands, Forestry and Mines, Women's Affairs and Tourism.
Dr Kwakye Afriyie, Minister of Lands, Forestry and Mines, in presenting the budget of 191.6 billion cedis said the Ministry would ensure the sustainable management and utilisation of the nation's lands, forests and wildlife resources for socio-economic development and growth.
He said the Ministry would deepen its objectives of formulating effective land use, increase private sector participation in land delivery service and to review, update and consolidate existing legislation affecting the land, forest and wildlife management.
Dr Afriyie said a marketing forum is to be organised to display the ministry's processed and unprocessed mineral resources.
Presenting the budget of seven billion cedis for the Ministry of Women's Affairs, the Minister, Mrs Gladys Asmah said it seeks to develop policies and programmes that would promote gender equality and child development at all levels of the society.
Mrs. Asmah said that the ministry would establish a national framework for women issues, through the institution of affirmative action on women's participation in public life.
Ms Hawa Yakubu, Minister of Tourism, moving for the approval of seven billion cedis to the ministry appealed to members, other stakeholders and the public to support the ministry to sell Ghana's tourist attractions to the world.
She commended the former minister, Mr Mike Gizo for sharing his experience with her.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 28 March 2001
Major Courage Quarshigah (rtd), Minister of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) on Tuesday told Parliament that the ministry is to pursue policies that would promote agriculture and rural development with the aim of satisfying domestic consumption and providing food security.
He said the Ministry would thus facilitate increased production of major staples including rice, maize, plantain, roots and tubers this year.
Major Quarshigah was moving for the parliamentary approval of 453.8 billion cedis as budgetary allocation to the ministry.
He said it is envisaged that additional 72,000 metric tonnes of milled rice would be produced while maize output would be increased by 10 per cent to ensure the establishment of buffer stocks.
The Ministry would encourage agro-processing to reduce post-harvest losses.
Major Quarshigah said the ministry has in consultation with fertiliser importers and the Agricultural Development Bank worked out modalities for ensuring timely importation of the product for sale at affordable prices during the 2001-farming season.
Another area of emphasis is the re-launching of the sugar industry for the local production of sugar from sugarcane.
Under the livestock sub-sector, Major Quarshigah said plans have been instituted to reduce mortality among village chicken, in addition to efforts to control diseases in both ruminants and non-ruminants and improving the productivity of indigenous breeds.
Major Quarshigah said as a measure of controlling marine and inland stocks, the fisheries directorate in collaboration with the Ghana Navy would carry out naval patrols in the marine sector while a 24-hour-surveillance on the Volta Lake would be mounted.
The implementation of the small-scale irrigation development project, under which 6,000 smallholder farmers would be assisted to cultivate 2,592 hectares, would be intensified.
Mr. Alex K. Korankye, Chairman of the Committee on Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs in a report called on the Members to support women farmers with part of their Common Fund.
He said it was the view of the committee that anti-rabies campaigns should receive national attention and priority given to the procurement of vaccines to effectively control the disease.
Mr Johnson Aseidu Nketia, NDC Wenchi West wondered why the issue of buffer stocks envisaged by the MOFA was not covered by the budget and advised that the private sector should be made to handle it.
He called for incentive packages to be made available to extension service providers to assist farmers with new technologies to improve productivity.
Incentive packages like tax concessions should also be directed to the banks to grant agricultural credits to farmers to boost production, he added
Mr Nketia said the issue of increased producer price of cocoa was a sure way of reducing the smuggling of the commodity across the borders and called for private participation in the proposed mass spraying of cocoa farms.
Mr George Isaac Amoo, NPP Ayawaso West Wuogon expressed concern about the increase in the importation of rice, which he said is a disservice to the local rice farmer.
He called on the Ministry to set up a committee to investigate the apparent collapse of the numerous rice projects and to find solutions to revamp the rice industry.
Dr Alfred Sugri Tia, NDC Nalerigu, said the collapse of state institutions such as the Meat Marketing Board and Ghana Food Distribution Corporation calls for measures of not only revamping the various institutions but equipping them to establish a buffer stock to save the declining agricultural sector.
He called on the Ministry to lend its support to the Animal Husbandry Department towards improving livestock production and especially the indigenous West African short horn cattle, which are resistant to diseases.
Dr Bonne Edward Baffoe, NPP Asokwa East, said the issue of erosion should be addressed since it depletes soil fertility and affects yields and productivity of farmers.
He suggested the preparation of land capability maps at the district, regional levels and sector agencies to support people venturing into agricultural production.
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