Author: Krobea

The Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, on Thursday delivered the 2019 budget statement and economic policy of the government of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. The presentation in Parliament took about four hours. It was on the theme: ‘A Stronger Economy for Jobs and Prosperity’. Mr Ofori-Atta represented the president in the House as per Article 179 of the 1992 Constitution. The budget outlined six strategic pillars of development for the government in 2019: infrastructure, agricultural modernisation, industrialisation, entrepreneurship, improving efficiency in revenue mobilisation and protecting the public purse and social intervention. It also announced key allocations for some government…

Government has given the Office of the Special Prosecutor GH¢180 million with a promise to provide additional resources in the course of 2019. This is to help the Office carry out its mandate. This was disclosed by Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta on the floor of Parliament on Thursday, November 15, 2018 when he presented the 2019 budget statement and economic policy. Popular lawyer Martin Alamisi Amidu was appointed Ghana’s first Special Prosecutor after the promulgation of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act 2017, Act 959. The former Attorney General and Minister of Justice has, however, grumbled over lack…

A national fundraising programme is scheduled to be held in Ghana and later in the US for the building of a national cathedral, the Minister of Finance has stated. The formal launch will first be held in Accra on Friday, December 28 while the second will be held in the United States in February, 2019. The desire to build a national cathedral was expressed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo upon ascension to the presidency. On March 6, 2017, precisely the 60th anniversary of Ghana’s independence, President Akufo-Addo cut sod for the construction of the national cathedral. But critics had…

The Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, says approximately 80 per cent of customers of the defunct DKM Diamond Microfinance have been settled. About 99,858 customers have been repaid their claims while the remaining have had theirs considered except that some could not validate them, he said. Mr Ofori-Atta made this known on Thursday, November 15 while delivering the 2019 budget statement and economic policy of government. The budget is themed: ‘A Stronger Economy for Jobs and Prosperity’. Touching on allegations of non-payment of claims to DKM customers, the Finance Minister said steps have been taken to repay all claims. Former…

Former Minister of Petroleum and Energy Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah has reiterated the Minority’s position on the 2019 budget statement and economic policy, warning Ghanaians to brace up for difficult times. “In fact, [in the 2019] budget, we are going to see a real decline in growth,” he noted. He was speaking to TV3’s Etornam Sey on Thursday ahead of the delivery of the budget in Parliament by Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta. Ofori-Atta delivers 2019 budget today Government has expressed hope that the 2019 budget – the first to be IMF-free – will raise the conditions of living of Ghanaians.…

Kenya’s Football Federation (FKF) says it has filed an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Wednesday, in a late bid to reverse their exclusion from the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, which starts on Saturday. On 18 October, Equatorial Guinea were banned for using an ineligible player in qualifying, with Kenya replacing them at Ghana 2018. But a Confederation of African Football (Caf) tribunal overturned that punishment on 7 November, reinstating Equatorial Guinea. “They included us in the draw and in the fixtures, so we prepared our team,” FKF president Nick Mwendwa told BBC Sport. “For…

Every sector of the economy is now suffering from the economic mismanagement of the government of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), according to former president John Dramani Mahama. He says the economic mismanagement by the Akufo-Addo administration has brought untold hardship on teachers, drivers, traders, farmers and public sector workers, among others. Addressing delegates of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) at Agona in the Afigya Sekyere East Constituency in the Ashanti Region as part of his four-day flagbearership campaign, Mr Mahama observed that the hardship confronting Ghanaians is contrary to the lofty promises made by the NPP ahead of the…

White House Deputy National Security Adviser Mira Ricardel has left her post, following a high-profile row with US First Lady Melania Trump. A White House spokeswoman said Mrs Ricardel “departs the White House to transition to a new role within the administration”. She did not elaborate. Mrs Trump this week said that Mrs Ricardel “no longer deserves the honour of serving in this White House”. The two reportedly feuded during a tour of Africa in October. The removal of Mrs Ricardel comes amid reports in US media that President Donald Trump is considering a shake-up in the White House West…

Michael Avenatti, lawyer for porn star Stormy Daniels in her suit against President Donald Trump, has been arrested on suspicion of domestic violence, police in Los Angeles say. Celebrity news website TMZ said this followed a physical confrontation between the lawyer and a woman. He denied the claim, and was later released on $50,000 (£38,500) bail. The lawyer represents Ms Daniels, who alleges she and President Trump had a brief relationship – a claim he denies. Ms Daniels has sought to free herself from a non-disclosure agreement she signed before the 2016 election. In a statement issued by his office,…

Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta is expected to be in Parliament today, Thursday, November 15, 2018, to deliver the 2019 budget statement and financial policy of government. The statement will be for a year in which Ghana will not be under an external credit facility (ECF) from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Government has already indicated the post-IMF budget will “bring more relief, hope and improvement in the standard of living of our people”. Addressing journalists last week, Minister of Information Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said the budget will see an expansion of credit to the benefit of small and medium-scale…