The combination of higher output growth, declining inflation and improved social spending under the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS) and Ghana Shared Growth and Development Agenda (GSGDA) has contributed significantly to lower poverty levels, according to the Ministry of Finance.
In a document titled “Ghana – Economic And Financial Policies For The medium Term (2014-2017),” the Finance Ministry noted that the incidence of poverty declined from 39.5 percent in 1998/99 to 28.5 percent in 2005/06.
And at this rate, “Ghana is poised to achieve the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of halving extreme poverty ahead of 2015,” the document stated.
The Ministry also noted that since the initiation of the MDGs, Ghana has made significant progress towards reducing poverty; improving access to education; reducing gender disparities in primary education; and providing access to improved water sources and these efforts have been recognized globally.
Despite these achievements, the Ministry took note of the fact that challenges still exist in the areas of reducing maternal and child mortality and increasing access to improved sanitation.
It also noted that “given the nearness to the deadline for achieving these targets, Governments is intensifying its efforts in these areas to enable the country achieve these targets by 2015.”
To this end, the ministry said, “Ghana stands ready to implement policies and programmes towards the achievement of the post-2015 development agenda.”
Source: GhanaWeb
