[ 2019-03-01 ]

EU grants Ghana €40 million under Economic Partnership Agreement
The government has signed a €40-million
budget support agreement with the European Union
(EU).

The grant is to support the country's national
development framework, which focuses on jobs as a
means to create prosperity and opportunity for
all, thereby contributing to the achievement of
the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Minister of Finance, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, signed
on behalf of Ghana, while the Ambassador of the EU
Delegation in Ghana, Ms Diana Acconcia, signed on
behalf of the EU.

Mr Ofori-Atta said yesterday’s signing was
the last tranche of the €323 million the EU
offered Ghana under the 11th National Indicative
Programme covering 2014 to 2020 as part of the
Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA).

He said many programmes and policies of the
government were targeted at job creation and
building an enabling environment for businesses to
thrive.

He said the support from the EU was apt and
encouraged other groupings to follow the
EU’s leadership.

Mr Ofori-Atta said Ghana’s credential as a
beacon of democracy and pillar of stability in
Africa was one of its defining features, as
political stability and deepened democratic
governance provided the congenial atmosphere and
great opportunity to implement long-term policies,
as well as develop local and international
partnerships.

The Finance Minister indicated that the
country’s adoption of a new approach to
economic management to restore macroeconomic
stability had improved the fiscal indicators
considerably, since the slippages at the end of
2016.

He said since assuming office in 2017, the
government’s unrelenting quest for the
promotion of investments and entrepreneurial job
creation had been evidenced through its policies
and programmes and the establishment of a Ministry
for Business Development.

“The ministry’s National
Entrepreneurship Innovative Plan (NEIP) in 2018
trained over 7,000 entrepreneurs, with 1,350 being
provided with financial support to strengthen
their businesses, while another 10,000 are
expected to be trained in 2019, with 2,000
beneficiaries being supported financially,”
he said.

Mr Ofori-Atta said the support by the EU
complemented the government’s efforts,
especially the interventions towards
decentralisation which, among others, facilitated
the development of national and local economic
development policies, adding that they also had
the potential to contribute to advancing President
Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s vision of a
Ghana Beyond Aid.

He also commended the EU for its innovative budget
support methods.

For her part, Ms Acconcia stated that the budget
support was an important lever to strengthen the
business environment and the investment climate
through regular policy dialogue and ambitious
performance indicators.

She said the funds would be managed by the
government and aligned with President
Akufo-Addo’s vision of Ghana Beyond Aid, a
long-term economic and social transformation
strategy.

She said the grant would enable the government to
accelerate the implementation of structural
reforms essential for strong inclusive growth and
job creation, saying that was a perfect example of
the Africa-Europe Alliance in action.

Ambassador Acconcia said the programme would focus
on the areas of business climate, public financial
governance and employment, but its main objectives
were to promote domestic and foreign private
investment, enable businesses to spearhead
economic transformation and create employment,
strengthen public financial governance, boost
domestic revenue mobilisation, as well as fight
against corruption.

She said it also showed how private investment
could help deliver the SDGs.

The EU Ambassador said cooperation with Ghana was
being adapted to the needs of “an inspiring
middle-income country which faced challenges to
deliver basic social services and build
institutional capacity”.

The European Development Fund (EDF) signed the
National Indicative Programme agreement with Ghana
in Nairobi, Kenya, on June 19, 2014 to support
Ghana with €323 million over the period
2014-2020.

It is based on the revised Cotonou Agreement
between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific
(ACP) countries, which requires that the ACP
countries open their markets for goods from the EU
to enter without tariffs or limits on quantities
that can enter.

The funds will support three priority areas of
governance, agriculture and employment and social
protection to prepare Ghana’s human
capacity and make local businesses and the economy
competitive, in the face of imminent open trade
between Ghana and the EU.

Source - Daily Graphic

... go Back