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Government to tackle critical poverty
Ho, Jan. 21, Ghanadot/GNA - An integrated
poverty alleviation programme, aimed at uplifting the
critically (extremely) poor from their predicament is in the
offing.
Known as the National Social Protection Strategy (NSPS), the
programme together with other poverty reduction
interventions is expected to empower the very vulnerable in
society by providing for their basic needs and get them out
of poverty.
The programme is under the auspices of the Ministry of
Manpower, Youth and Employment (MMYE).
Mrs Angela Asante-Asare, NSPS National Coordinator, told a
sensitization workshop in Ho that the programme was not a
project, but a mainstream policy of government to cushion
people from becoming destitute.
She said the programme strategy, which represented
investment in the poor, would dovetail into existing poverty
alleviation programmes, which often left out the very poor.
Officers from the Department of Social Welfare, District
Assemblies, some District Chief Executives, Labour Officers
and representatives of the Ghana Education Service among
others attended the workshop.
Mrs Asante-Asare said poverty trends based on various
studies indicated that an estimated 40 percent of Ghanaians
regarded as poor were classified as being able to meet their
"basic nutritional needs, while unable to access health
facilities, get adequate shelter, clothing and education.
She said 14.7 percent out of the 40 who fell under the
"extreme poor" were unable to cater for basic human needs,
including their nutritional requirements and additionally
suffered from inter-generational poverty.
Mrs Asante-Asare said the cycle of poverty for some families
must be stopped to enable them to join the rest of Ghanaians
to work to attain national developmental goals.
She said the main flagship plan under the programme was the
Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) operating
under the slogan "Investing In People".
Mrs Asante-Asare said under LEAP, the orphaned and
vulnerable children, people above 65 years who are extremely
poor and persons with severe disabilities who had no
productive capacity would be identified for social grants.
Mr Mawutor Goh, Ho Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) who
opened the workshop called for the elimination of
corruption, favouritism, nepotism and bureaucratic
bottlenecks in the administration of poverty alleviation
interventions.
Dr William Ahadzi, Centre of Social Policy Studies of the
University of Ghana in a paper said governments must provide
interventions to cater for the social consequences of some
economic policies.
He said the trend now was for even the World Bank and its
affiliates to incorporate social mitigation variants
alongside their stringent economic programmes.
GNA
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