We must all sacrifice to build nation – Finance Minister

 The Minister of Finance, Dr Cas­siel Ato Forson, has appealed to all stakeholders to sacrifice towards the rebuilding of the economy for the common good of all.

He said the measures put in place to resuscitate the country’s economy would require the sup­port of every Ghanaian irrespec­tive of his or her status in society.

Presenting the 2025 annual budget in Parliament in Accra yesterday, the Minister said ordinary Ghanaians had also sacrificed by enduring the neg­ative impact of severe currency depreciation, hyperinflation, high food inflation, principal and inter­est haircuts, soaring interest rates, among others as such it was time for others to also sacrifice.

“Mr Speaker, it is now time for the peoples’ representatives, the Parliament of Ghana and the judiciary to follow suit. I would also like to call on all other stake­holders, including the business community, faith-based organisa­tions, academia and civil society to support this national call,” he reiterated.

Dr Forson said the immediate task for all Ghanaians was how to reset the nation and restore good governance, reduce the excruci­ating suffering of the people and set it on a trajectory of economic transformation.

“Our vision is to build a prosperous and a democratic state anchored on the principles of freedom and justice, provid­ing equal opportunities for all. Through this vision, we will work together to build the Ghana we all want,” he said.

The Finance Minister noted that the government’s grand agenda to resetting the country would be anchored on restoring hope in democracy, renewing trust in public officials, and help­ing every Ghanaian attain their full potential.

Furthermore, the resetting agenda would be anchored on offering a trusted hand to the vul­nerable, particularly women and youth and creating a new Ghana for coming generations.

Similarly, it would be moored on stimulating demand by patron­ising made-in-Ghana goods un­der the 24-hour Economy Policy.

Dr Forson said consistent with Section 14 of the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921), the fiscal policy objectives of government was to support the economic transformation agenda to ensure the macroeconomic stability of the country within the macroeconomic and fiscal framework.

He said more specifically, the fiscal policy objectives of govern­ment would include: rationalising government expenditure and eliminating wasteful expenditure; optimising domestic revenue mo­bilisation through the broadening of the tax base, increased non-tax revenue collection, adopting enhanced tax compliance mea­sures, and modernisation of tax administration through digital technology; increasing the share of domestic capital expenditure to spur economic growth and job creation; and reducing public debt to sustainable levels and adopting prudent debt manage­ment practices to support debt sustainability.

In addition, he said it would include reducing the fiscal deficit progressively in accordance with an amended Fiscal Responsibility Act to promote fiscal and debt sustainability; and restoring confi­dence in Ghana’s economy.

 BY CLIFF EKUFUL

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