Bawumia will transform economy – NPP

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has outlined plans to reduce the high cost of living, improve the standard of living and develop various sectors of the economy when the party is retained in power.

At a press conference addressed by various speakers at its Campaign Communication Office in Dzorwulu, Accra, last Wednesday, the party unveiled plans to improve the agriculture, transport, energy and housing sectors as captured in its manifesto for the 2024 elections.

Speaking on the energy sector, an energy expert and former NPP presidential aspirant, Kojo Poku, said a Dr Mahamudu Bawumia presidency would roll out a 200-megawatt (MW) solar power to provide electricity in areas without electricity connectivity, increase connectivity from 80 to 100 per cent and reduce electricity cost by 50 per cent.

He said the government would expand the Gold-For-Oil (G4O) scheme to help importers of fuel to negotiate “better ore competitive premiums with suppliers”; adding that the introduction of G4O helped to reduce premiums between US$180 and US$ 200 to US$70 per metric tonnes (MT) or less.

He added that Dr Bawumia’s presidency would incentivise solar power users through the metering system to enable households and other producers of solar power to get credits for the excess power they would send to the national grid against which they could use the grid power when not connected to the solar source.

For the transport sector, Madam Lawuratu Musah-Saaka said the next NPP government, if it won the election, would reduce the cost of transportation by facilitating private sector investment in Electric Vehicle (EV) and infrastructure, expand the G4O to continue to stabilise fuel price and the price of spare parts by implementing a “flat rate for all importers”.

She added that the NPP would work with and incentivise private sector platform developers to integrate the digital marketplace for spare parts and provide logistical support for onboarding participants in the marketplace.

Madam Musah-Saaka said the next NPP administration would reform the drivers’ licensing system for the extension of licence renewals from two to five years, with the licence validity pegged at 10 years.

Agriculture and housing

For agriculture, the Member of Parliament for Trobu, Moses Anim, highlighted that the NPP administration would consolidate the gains of the Planting for Foods and Jobs (PFJ) initiative and invest in other initiatives to promote all-year-round farming to ensure food security.

Specifically, he said the next administration would “launch an expanded irrigation programme, including the rehabilitation of the Vea Irrigation Project, implementation of the Pwalugu Irrigation Scheme and Bui Irrigation Scheme, complete feasibility and detailed designs of the Kaanba, Makango and Afram Plains irrigation schemes, and expand other schemes under the “One Village, One Dam (1V1D) initiative”; adding that the current government had built over 400 dams for aquaculture and irrigation purposes.

He said as part of the initiatives, there would be an acceleration of efforts at de-risking agricultural financing through the Ghana-Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System (GIRSAL) for Agricultural Lending, and also upscale the production and preservation of staple foods, meat, poultry and fish products using financing and guarantee schemes from the Development Bank Ghana (DBG) and GIRSAL.

Responding to questions from journalists, a former Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, said the assertion that the PFJ had failed was erroneous, as it had helped increase food production in the country, although the country had in recent times experienced food inflation.

He indicated that the country, prior to 2017, used to import foodstuffs such as plantain, cocoyam and others from Cote d’Ivoire, but had through the PFJ eradicated the menace by increasing the cultivation of these staples for local consumption.

For housing, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ablekuma North, Ms Sheila Bartels, said a Dr Mahamudu Bawumia-led administration would work with faith-based organisations (FBOs) and charities to provide homeless shelters and also provide public lands in some cities across the country, and in partnership with private developers, “redevelop into residential homes and mandatorily set aside requirements of between 20 and 30 per cent for low-income, social housing units with subsidised rents”.

She added that the NPP government would provide vital amenities such as roads, water, electricity and renewable energy at housing project sites as part of the partnership with private developers to enhance affordable housing.