2020 elections: LPG promises monthly unemployment benefits for persons 18 years and above

The Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG), says anybody in Ghana above 18 years will be given a monthly allowance, if it receives the nod in the upcoming December 7 elections.

With COVID-19 rendering thousands of Ghanaians jobless, Kofi Akpaloo, believes it is the opportune time for Ghanaians to start receiving unemployment benefits.

“[As a] party, we are the only people promoting liberalism in Ghana. We give people the opportunity to develop themselves. Once in government, we are going to introduce unemployment benefits.

“The unemployment benefits will help stimulate our economy because everybody [unemployed] above 18 years will receive money every month and this money will help businesses grow.

“It is something that we are going to use to stimulate the economy. We believe that everybody should get something at the end of the day,” the LPG presidential candidate said in a Citi FM interview, monitored by theghanareport.com.

According to Mr Akpaloo, the party is committed to creating more jobs to level the field for all Ghanaians.

The International Labour Office on unemployment benefits in a report released, in June 2000, revealed that 75% of the 150 million people unemployed around the world lack any unemployment insurance protection.

According to the report, even the world’s richest countries in Europe and North America reduced protection provided by unemployment insurance in the 1990s.

But countries like Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland provide the most generous unemployment protection systems.

The report identifies Australia, Canada, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States as belonging to “medium-level type systems”.

Meanwhile, the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has also hinted that the unemployed in Ghana could be enjoying some benefits.

The unemployment benefits or insurance is simply meant to relieve the socio-economic burdens of those who fit the narrow definition of unemployment, thus, people without any means of livelihood.

The Finance Minister gave hints of the policy ahead of the presentation of the mid-year budget review in July.

The conversation about unemployment benefits, according to the sector minister, had been necessitated by the novel coronavirus pandemic and the economic hardships it has brought on Ghanaians.

The Director of the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER), Peter Quartey, also urged the government to introduce an insurance policy to cushion workers who lose jobs due to unforeseen tragedies.

The Bank of Ghana’s research team said at least 100, 000 people have been rendered jobless following the pandemic.

More LPG promises

Outlining the party’s core campaign message for the 2020 elections as it prepares to roll out its nationwide campaign, Mr Akpaloo said the LPG will turnaround the country’s economic fortunes.

He said the party will stop at nothing in making sure that every Ghanaian voter in each of the 16 regions of the country “understand why Ghana’s economy will change once the party takes over power in 2021”.

Some of the party’s core message, he said would include the introduction and payment of child benefits, unemployment benefits, regularise galamsey and small scale mining, fix all roads in Ghana by 2024, provide world-class school infrastructure, free wi-fi in all schools and colleges.

Additionally, Mr Akpaloo said the party would turn Ghana’s sport and entertainment into a $10 billion industry to create wealth and jobs.

“We will build 10 new state-of-the-art ultra-modern hospitals and improve upon the existing health infrastructure to turn Ghana into a medical tourism centre,” he said.

For young entrepreneurs, Mr Akpaloo said an LPG-government would set up a $10 billion job fund to provide capital for young Ghanaians to start their own businesses.

“We will bring all Ghanaians irrespective of their political affiliation together to rebuild Ghana,” he said.