Accra, 30th September, 2020 - The Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta has on behalf of Government signed two financial agreements worth €92.9 million with the European Union to support covid-19 response in Ghana; electoral violence prevention and support to enhance security in the northern border regions of Ghana.
The signing of the Emergency EU Budget Support in Response to the Covid-19 situation amounted to €87million, whiles that of Preventing Electoral Violence and Providing Security to the Northern Border Regions of Ghana also amounted to €5.9 million.
“We must acknowledge that these programmes would be critical to how we reposition our economy in the face of unprecedented challenges and protect our democracy. As with most previous interventions, these programmes will revitalize our enduring partnership and bolster our commitment to improving lives” Mr. Ofori-Atta said.
He commended the European Union for the grant and stated that the support was timely and would not only help ease the fiscal pressures created by the pandemic, but also help to sustain the pursuit of critical interventions and enable businesses to thrive in a post-Covid-19 era.
“The successful framing of these interventions demonstrate the responsiveness and flexibility imbued in this unique relationship that dates back to 1975. For this, I believe the European Union deserves commendation” Mr. Ofori-Atta added.
The Minister indicated that the targeted support for the upcoming election could not have come at the right time and that Government had also passed vital legislations and embarked on extensive education to overhaul the ecosystem of elections related violence.
“We continue to also prioritize security of the borders, realizing the threats to our territorial integrity. Your support will most certainly catalyze the achievement of desired results in these sectors”, he emphasized.
He enumerated a number of interventions Government had introduced to confront the socio-economic effects of the pandemic on lives and livelihoods saying that “Cognizant of the long-term impact of the pandemic, Government is not only planning for the near and immediate term. We have thus developed the Ghana Covid-19 Alleviation and Revitalization of Enterprises Support (Ghana CARES) Programme”.
The programme he explained, aims to mitigate the impact of the pandemic and to ensure that Ghana quickly emerges from the pandemic with a stronger and more resilient economy.
Ms. Diana Acconcia, EU Ambassador to Ghana and Head of the Delegation to Ghana who signed the agreement on behalf of the European Union noted that the support took keen cognizance of the shortfalls in Government revenue and the unanticipated expenses.
“This support is part of the EU’s Team Europe package that combines resources from the common EU budget, the Member States and EU financial institutions. Our common objective is to help Ghana respond effectively to the socio-economic impact of the Covid-19 crisis and put in place mitigating measures,” she added.
“In a few days the European Union will transfer the bulk of this sum of the budget support to the national treasury of Ghana and let me assure the Ghanaian people that this is an unprecedented operation to respond to an unprecedented circumstance with regards to the coronavirus pandemic,” she explained.
In attendance at the signing ceremony were selected Ambassadors and High Commissioners from Malta, France, Spain, Germany and the Netherlands, Director of Resource Mobilization and Economic Relations, Madam Yvonne Quansah, Director for Budget, Madam Evelyn Arthur and the media. END