Govt to give 20 billion cedis to the poor

Accra, Sept. 18, GNA - Government has set aside 20 billion cedis in the 2007 budget to give out as free hand-outs to persons classified as "extreme poor and vulnerable" in society, Minister of Manpower, Employment and Youth Development, Nana Akomea, told journalists on Tuesday.

The gesture is dubbed: "Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) Programme" and would provide direct cash transfers of between US$15 to US$30 a month to extreme poor and vulnerable such as care givers of orphans and vulnerable children, extreme poor incapacitated aged 65 years and above and persons with severe disability. Nana Akomea made the announcement when he took his turn at the meet the press series organized by the Ministry of Information and National Orientation (MINO).

He said LEAP was a key component of the National Social Protection Strategy (NSPS), primarily funded by the British Department for International Development (DFID), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Bank (WB).

The Minister said the ministry would liaise with its various MDAs, MMDAs, NGOs and Civil Society Organisations to educate the Public on the NSPS and therefore assist to identify possible beneficiaries. Nana Akomea noted that the existence of extremely poor and vulnerable persons in society was evident in the several able and disabled beggars on the street, saying that the situation was indicative of a society dysfunction and an indictment on the conscience of those who have.

On the issue of beggars on the streets, he noted that the law completely prohibited begging and the ministry would enforce the law to the letter, but with a human face.

He explained that currently the ministry was constructing reception and rehabilitation centres to respectively house and train disabled beggars after they were cleared from the street.

"Those who are not able to learn a trade at the centres would be kept at the reception centres or in their regular homes and be given free cash handouts on monthly basis just to keep them off the streets," he said.

Nana Akomea said Ghana was a caring society and the ministry therefore intended to capitalize on the caring nature of the Ghanaian society to provide for the poor and also keep them off the streets. He said already the Social Welfare Department (SWD) of the Ministry operated a credit facility for persons with disabilities, paid their National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) premium with funding from UNICEF, and that so far 88.2 million cedis NHIS premium had been paid on behalf of 2,347 orphans and vulnerable children and 1,225 care givers. The minister expressed concern about the way some NGOs, which purported to provide safety nets for the poor and vulnerable had reportedly become notorious for lining their own pockets with funds provided by government and other financiers.

He gave the assurance that measures were being taken to regulate the formation, registrations and operations of NGOs more efficiently to rule out the notorious ones.

He said the new NGOs regulations bill dubbed Trust and Non Profit Civil Society Organisations Bill, was currently being formulated, adding that by the end of the year the Trust Commission would be in place to monitor and regulate NGOs more closely and to ensure they delivered to their clientele.