‘We protected lives, livelihoods at the peak of coronavirus’ - Akufo-Addo

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Tuesday said government instituted measures to protect lives and livelihoods of Ghanaians during the peak period of the Covid-19 pandemic despite the impact on fiscal stability.

“We know what to do to bring the economy back to life, what we do not know how to do is to bring people back to life,” the President said.

“That is why Government did not hesitate to institute measures to protect the lives and livelihoods of Ghanaians, even if it was to the temporary detriment of our much sought-after fiscal stability,” he said.

Delivering the State of the Nation to Parliament, the President listed the measures to include the formulation and implementation of the COVID-19 preparedness and response plan, tracing, testing, treatment, waiver of personal income tax and provision of an additional 50 per cent basic salary allowance to healthcare workers.

Government also expanded the capacities of laboratories to increase COVID-19 testing, established isolation centres in all regions and districts, fumigated markets and schools, provided food packages and hot meals for residents in areas affected by the partial lockdown and free water for all households.

Others are the provision of free electricity for lifeline consumers and a 50 per cent discount for all other consumers, reduction in the Communication Service Tax (CST) from nine per cent to five per cent, the institution of a GH¢750 million loan facility for micro, small and medium enterprises through the CAPBUS Initiative, and the provision of a two billion-cedi guarantee facility to support large organisations such as schools and pharmaceutical companies.

The President said the Bank of Ghana also offered support under its brilliant leadership, which lowered the Monetary Policy Rate by 150 basis points to 14.5 per cent and reduced the Primary Reserve Requirement from 10 per cent to eight per cent.

It also reduced the Capital Adequacy Requirement from 13 per cent to 11.5 per cent and reduced interest rates based on the Ghana Reference Rate by two per cent or 200 basis points.

The Ghana Revenue Authority has also extended the dates for filing of taxes from four months to six months after the end of the basis year, issued a waiver on VAT, National Health Insurance Levy and GETFund Levy on donations of equipment and goods for fighting the pandemic.

It also waived income taxes on Third-Tier Pension withdrawals and permitted the deduction of contributions and donations towards COVID-19 as allowable expense for tax purposes.

President Akufo-Addo said the Government found the resources to cushion the impact of the pandemic because “we are good managers of the economy, and we are good protectors of the public purse.”

President Akufo-Addo noted that the pandemic exposed the need to expedite the process of moving Ghana to a situation beyond aid.

“That is why Government has developed and is currently implementing the one hundred-billion-cedi (GH¢100 billion) Ghana CARES ‘Obaatampa’ Programme to transform, revitalise and modernise our economy, and return it to high and sustained growth for the next three years,’’ he said.

The key projects under the CARES Programme include supporting commercial farming and attracting educated youth into commercial farming, building the country’s light manufacturing sector, developing engineering/machine tools and ICT/digital economy industries and fast-tracking digitalisation.

Others are developing Ghana’s housing & construction industry, establishing Ghana as a Regional Hub, reviewing and optimising the implementation of Government flagships and key programmes; creating jobs for young people, and expanding opportunities for the vulnerable in society, including persons with disability.

The President said the establishment of the National Development Bank, under the Ghana CARES programme, was expected to provide support to businesses in Ghana.

“Government expects economic activity, which has already picked up, to do so even further, following the ongoing vaccination exercise and the easing of restrictions put in place to curb the effects of the disease.”

“We expect GDP growth to rebound strongly this year to nearly five per cent (5%), above the IMF’s 2021 January projection of 3.2% growth for Sub-Saharan Africa for 2021.”

“The medium-term outlook supported by the implementation of the Ghana CARES Programme is bright. We are confident that, together, we will emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic with a stronger and more resilient economy,” he said.

President Akufo-Addo said for the nation to oversee the rebirth and growth of the economy, her people must be healthy, and not succumb to COVID-19.

“The Government has, therefore, secured the first batch of vaccine doses from the COVAX Facility, and the vaccination campaign is currently ongoing, with 262,335 Ghanaians so far receiving the first dose of the vaccines,” he said.

The President said the Government was working hard towards realising a target of vaccinating 20 million Ghanaians.

“It is also on course to taking delivery of some 17.6 million vaccine doses by June, with more to come in the year.”

He urged the people’s representatives to support and lend their voices to the public education campaign to ensure more people got vaccinated.

“The vaccine, together with strict compliance with the safety protocols, is what will allow us to open up our country again, and embark on the quest to restore normalcy to our lives and livelihoods,” the President said.

The SONA is in accordance with Article 67 of the Constitution, which mandates the President to deliver the address at the beginning of every session of the House, and also before its dissolution at the end of a term of the House.