Ogbojo, Oct. 3, GNA – The policies and
programmes that the government has instituted over the last 21 months indicate
that Ghana’s destiny “is in safe hands”, President Nana Addo Dankwa
Akufo-Addo has said.
He said the time in office of his
administration, had been inspiring, and has impacted positively on the life of
every Ghanaian and in every part of the country.
“We have shown, over the last 21 months that
the destiny of Ghana is safe in our hands. We have proven, by all accounts, to
be good managers of the Ghanaian economy, and we have made significant progress
in all aspects of our nation’s life.”
The President said this when speaking at the
2018 capacity building conference held by the Ministry of Local Government and
Rural Development for Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives
(MMDCE’s) at the Institute of Local Government Service at Ogbojo, Madina, near
Accra.
“Whether it is in the economy, where we have
increased the GDP growth rate from 3.6% in 2016 to 8.5% in 2017, and have
engineered a decline in inflation and interest rates; or in education, where we
have implemented the Free Senior High School policy, which has enabled 270,000
more Ghanaian youths to access Senior High School, than they otherwise would
have done,” the President said.
President Akufo-Addo noted that his
administration had revived the National Health Insurance Scheme, “so that
the NHIS card is, once again, meaningful”.
His administration, he said, had revamped the
agricultural sector, with the institution of the programme for Planting for
Food and Jobs, which had resulted in the country not importing a single grain
of maize into the country this year.
He
further noted that his administration, through the reduction in utility
tariffs, had brought relief to the Ghanaian people, and spurred on business and
industry, through significant reductions of utility tariffs.
President Akufo-Addo, however, noted that in
spite of the modest successes chalked by his administration, if MMDCEs do not
perform creditably in the next two years, “then our best efforts will come
to naught.”
He urged an effective partnership between
Metropolitan and Municipal Assemblies, which are in close proximity to each
other, as they represented the best way to dealing with issues such as
sanitation, transportation, disaster management and security, amongst others.
“Currently, such a system is being implemented
in the Accra Metropolitan Area. Together, the Accra Metropolitan Assembly, and
some municipal assemblies in Accra, are working to deal with the vexed issue of
sanitation.
“This collaboration has achieved
significant results so far. The heaps of rubbish that were once permanent
features in the assemblies in question are no longer in existence,” he added.
The President further counselled the MMDCEs to
pay particular attention and help in the effective delivery of government’s
flagship programmes such as the Free SHS, Planting for Food and Jobs, and the
Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme, which was providing the
equivalent of one million dollars per constituency to finance capital
expenditure for infrastructure and other facilities in the localities.
“The challenge is very much for you to take
advantage of these programmes to bring change to your districts. You have the
opportunity, through these policies, to change your districts from places where
people move from, to places where people move to, and I entreat you to help
ensure the effective implementation and the sustainability of these flagship
programmes in your districts, municipalities and metropolises,” he added.
GNA