Debates of 16 Mar 2005

MR. SPEAKER
PRAYERS 10 a.m.
VOTES AND PROCEEDINGS AND THE OFFICIAL REPORT 10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker 10 a.m.
We have the Official Report for Friday, 4th March, 2005. Any omissions and corrections can be referred to the Acting Editor of Debates. Hon. Members, we may take Statements in the meantime.
STATEMENTS 10 a.m.
Mr. Kojo Armah (CPP -- Evalue- Gwira) 10:10 a.m.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for allowing me to contribute to this Statement. It is a very important Statement and I want to thank the hon. Member for bringing up the issues he has raised for consideration.
Mr. Speaker, the issues he has raised are very real. On the question of the poisonous chemicals, insecticides and the rest that are used, there is a live case currently before the Ghana Standards Board. Only two weeks ago, a restaurant owner I know in Accra bought a lot of tuna-flakes from Axim, used the fish to prepare food for three different working groups in three different institutions, but all the three groups complained about vomiting and itches in the mouth.
A quantity of the food has already been sent to the Ghana Standards Board for analysis and report; we are still awaiting the report. This confirms that insec- ticides, some of them very harmful for human consumption, are being applied by the fishermen along the coast. On the use of aggregated fishing, it is also a very serious matter. Indeed, in my district, last year I was confronted with a very massive demonstration which was brought under control through the joint action of the Regional Minister and myself at that time,
but the issue is still pending.
What is even more serious -- the complaints that we have, are that those who are supposed to monitor these things on the high seas and bring the perpetrators to book are the very people who own some of the generator sets that are used on the high seas. In other words, the naval personnel have found the job so lucrative that some of them have acquired the generating sets and they give them to the fishermen to use.
The impact of this on the daily activities of the fishermen is that, because the inshore canoe fishermen do not need all the fish that they catch by the aggregated means, they sell some of them very cheaply to the fishermen who go to buy them on the high seas; and they sell them to people on land thereby creating some sort of vacuum in the operations of the fishermen.
Mr. Speaker, the canoe fishermen are very, very angry and we have been having daily reports of attempts to go on a demonstration. I do not know whether that would also be a wahala one or something, but they would go on a demonstration if nothing is done to stop this type of practice. There is practically nothing that anybody can do except the naval personnel who monitor these things on the high seas.
I want to appeal to them to be very dedicated to their jobs and ensure that this practice is stopped. Because the reports that we are getting is that unless we stop this practice the infra-rays that are emitted from the lights would also attack the fingerlings and the unneeded fish and they would die; and any fish within a certain radius is also affected and die in the process. And so within the foreseeable future, marine life would be seriously affected.
Mr. Speaker, I also think that it is important for the new Ministry of Fisheries to establish a very strong monitoring team
along the coast, including the fishermen themselves and the unit committees that live on the shores, so that we can monitor and prosecute those who perpetrate this practice. Very soon we would be entering the fishing season and the issue would come up very strongly, and unless we deal with it at this initial stage, Mr. Speaker, I am afraid we would have problems on our hands.
I support the Statement. I support the call on the House, the Minister and indeed the Government to take a very stern action against the continuous use of both the poisonous insecticides and aggregated fishing on the high seas to save our marine life.
Mr. Speaker, I thank you for allowing me to make this contribution.
Mr. J. Y. Chireh (NDC -- Wa West) 10:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I want to associate myself with the Statement on the floor. First of all, I thank the maker of the Statement for drawing our attention to this rather serious matter.
But Mr. Speaker, if you would recall,
yesterday when we were approving the Estimates for the Ministry of Fisheries, the Committee's Report indicated that the Fisheries Commission, whose tenure expired two years ago, has not been reconstituted. Now, this is a constitu- tionally-created body to help in -- [Interruption] -- It is -- and I emphasize it; that is what the Report said and I know it is there. The Constitution says that they should create that Commission so, for me, the maker of the Statement is urging Government generally and the Ministry of Fisheries in particular to do something about it. But one reason why the Fisheries
Mr. J. Y. Chireh (NDC -- Wa West) 10:30 a.m.
Now I would want Government to
expedite action, that is, to reconstitute the Commission as quickly as possible. Is the Government saying that there are no men and women in the country who can become members of that Commission? Looking at the number of Ministers we have in the regime now, I think that it would have stood us in good stead for many more qualified people, people who have knowledge in fisheries, to be constituted into this body, and also in the new Ministry to help in managing the resources available in the industry.
Mr. Speaker, the thing to do is to
constitute the Commission and I urge the Government to do so.
Mr. A. E. Amoah (NPP -- Mpohor
Wassa East): Mr. Speaker, the Statement that our hon. Friend has made is really interesting but quite dangerous. In fact, last year, when the People's Assembly was coming on in Takoradi, I witnessed some of the fishermen threatening to go on a demonstration if that activity was not stopped. As the hon. Member has mentioned, this nefarious activity has not stopped and I think that the House would need to take a definite decision or a definite step in order to control the situation.
In fact, I am obliged to think that there
are laws on fisheries in this country and it looks as if we need to enforce these laws in order to make sure that we are on the right path. I would also suggest that we take a more holistic approach to both fishing and farming. In fact, if you look at the way fishing is done in our communities, the situation of the ordinary fisherman is just as weak as the ordinary farmer. There are a lot of problems that the local fisherman meets so when some of these activities are thrown to him, he finds it as a way of trying
to make the situation better for himself.
In fact, we know that in the local fishing environment, bumper harvests are seasons when these fishermen would laugh, but during the lean seasons, incomes are very low and we know that on the coastal stretch there are very few storage facilities for these fishermen. I think that there is the need for us to have a kind of mobile storage facility so that during bumper harvests some of the fish could be bought in order that these fishermen would be able to make more money.
Additionally, I think to address the
problem, there is the need for constant workshops and seminars for these fishermen. I believe that if some of these fishermen would talk among themselves, some of them would see reason, apart from the law enforcing agencies trying to bring the perpetrators to book.
Again, for a more holistic approach to problems pertaining to the fishing industry, especially at the local level, I would suggest a kind of an inventory system which has been happening with some of the non-governmental organiza- tions (NGOs). And some of the NGOs, or specifically the Ministry of Fisheries could come out with a system where the local fishermen would be assisted with inputs. With these inputs they would be able to increase their catch and then what they are able to get would be stored in some of the cold stores so that the fishermen could have sustained income.
I know there was a time that there was hue and cry about fishermen having no future, because we know that both fishermen and farmers in our local communities do not have pension as have people in the formal sector. And I think that some of them even do not have welfare packages. I believe that we need
to look at the problem in a holistic form and try and come out with some kind of welfare packages for fishermen.
I am happy that at least, for this year, a new Ministry of Fisheries has come up. I believe that the Ministry would be able to come out with strategies that would help these fishermen to have sustained incomes. I think that if some of these things are done, it would be easier to bring the few perpetrators of these nefarious activities to book.
I would in conclusion, say that it is very
dangerous to allow this situation to go on. All the stakeholders in the system must actually try and help so that we would be able to enjoy the fish in the sea.
Mr. Speaker, I am done.
Alhaji Seidu Amadu (NDC -- Yapei/
Kusawgu): Mr. Speaker, some of us do not stay by the coast but we come from areas where we have large bodies of inland water -- mainly the Volta Lake system. I would like to, therefore, with your permission, associate myself with this Statement and probably to emphasize more on some of the activities that also affect inland canoe fishermen.
Mr. Speaker, it is indeed true that some
coastal fishermen who have been used to fishing in the sea have also relocated and have virtually transferred their unapproved methods to the lake system. And by so doing, there has been a lot of conflict between the traditional inland canoe fishermen and the new inland canoe fishermen who have relocated from the coastal areas.
Mr. Speaker, it is true that most
fishermen in their bid to bring in more catch and make more money continue to use all sorts of chemicals including explosives in fishing. And this method
destroys even the fingerlings, the very, very young ones, including those which are carrying eggs; and that is directly affecting the entire resources of the Volta Lake.
There are some who think that well, marine life is inexhaustible depending upon the quantity of eggs a fish lays and the fingerlings that come out of those eggs. But Mr. Speaker, if we continue fishing without recourse to seasons when even fish are supposed to pond, definitely, it would affect the population of the fishes; and that is exactly what is happening.
We are told that there are some rivers in Europe where you do not even have any form of life, at least, not in the quantity that would warrant the fishermen to go there. And it is because of the discharge into the sea of toxic chemicals which have affected life.
Mr. Speaker, there used to be a stretch between the confluence of the Black Volta and Buipe which was a sanctuary for hippopotamus. Today, you cannot find a single hippopotamus in that stretch of the Black Volta. Invariably, most of them have migrated to Interoso -- Intereso is in the Bole district and it is part of the Mole National Park -- where there is a reasonable population of hippopotamus. Others are believed to have continued the upward migration to safer areas around Wechiau in the Upper West. But the lawns on the Black Volta used to be the traditional home of hippopotamus. Since the fishermen introduced the use of chemicals and explosives in fishing, most of them have left.

Mr. Speaker, if we want to address this

issue, then we should also look at the possibility of supporting the fishermen.

If we are able to support them with the right fishing gear, it will stop most of them from using gear that is not approved. But if you allow a fisherman to fend for himself by going to buy what is available on the market, Mr. Speaker, he would want to buy something that would give optimum production of whatever he does in the day. We need to look at this issue; it is a very serious one and we need to sympathise with the situation.

Mr. Speaker, finally, there is this additional issue of the movement of the barge that sells fuel and other commodities between Akosombo and Buipe. More often than not, fishermen who cast their nets along the river get all their nets harvested by the trawler and it has continued to be a problem to the fishermen.

I think that the company's headquarters in Akosombo should be prevailed upon to find a very good method of transmitting information to the fishermen for them to know that on such and such a date and time we are likely to be at this location, so that the fishermen will have ample time to move their nets. Or else they keep losing their nets at a considerable cost and I do not think that is fair.

So much as we are drawing the attention of Government to marine fishing, we should also look at the possibility of re- examining the industry that affects canoe fishermen.

With this, Mr. Speaker, I support the Statement.
PAPERS 10:30 a.m.
CONSIDERATION OF ANNUAL 10:30 a.m.
ESTIMATES 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Speaker 10:30 a.m.
Hon. Members, we have
a lot of work today and I do hope hon. Members will be brief, concise and speak to the question.
Minister for the Interior (Papa
Owusu-Ankomah): Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and I accordingly take a cue from your admonition. I will be brief. I do not intend to spend five minutes in moving this motion.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, That this House approves the sum of six hundred and thirty-seven billion, eight hundred and seventy-five million cedis (¢637,875, 000,000) for the running of the Ministry of the Interior for the 2005 financial year.
Introduction
Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of the Interior consists of the Headquarters (General Administration), and the under- mentioned agencies:
i. Ghana Police Service;
ii. Ghana Prisons Service;
iii. Ghana National Fire Service;
iv. Ghana Immigration Service;
v. National Disaster Management Organisation; and
vi. Narcotics Control Board.
Additionally, the Ministry is responsible for the handling of issues relating to refugees and the proliferation of small arms through the following agencies respectively:
Ghana Refugee Board; and
Ghana National Commission on Small Arms.
The Ministry of the Interior has as its broad aim the maintenance of the country's internal security, which is sine qua non for the attainment of the developmental objectives of the country. It is thus important that the necessary resources are made available to the Ministry and its Agencies to make the country safe and secure not only for all of us to live and work in but also attractive to investors to support the various initiatives that the Government has put in place.
Appraisal of the 2004 Budget Estimates
Mr. Speaker, the performance of the Ministry and its agencies with respect to the 2004 Budget is indicated below:
2004
Allocation 2004 Releases
¢ ¢
Item 1 :
437,716,000,000.00
476,101,467,333
Item 2
: 146,760,000,000.00
133,374,916,689
Item 3 :
60,000,000,000.00
55,254,851,003
Item 4 : 30,000,000,000.00 17,573,972,218
Donor : 37,770,000,000.00 37,770,000,000
Total : 712,246,000,000.00 720,075,207,243
Brief Report on the Achievements of the Ministry and its Agencies
Mr. Speaker, an appraisal of the performance of the Ministry in 2004 may be seen in the remarkable improvement in the security situation in the country due to a number of initiatives. The Ministry continued its programme of procuring resources and logistics for the Agencies under it. This included the following:
i. Improvement in the logistic situation for the Ministry and its agencies through the procurement of various types of operational vehicles as well as other equipment;
ii. Procurement of about ¢24 billion HIPC funding for the Agencies. Details are
BUDGET 10:30 a.m.
NCB NIL 10:30 a.m.
GRB NIL 10:30 a.m.
INTERIOR 10:30 a.m.
NADMO NIL NIL NIL 10:30 a.m.
NCB NIL NIL NIL 10:30 a.m.
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Mr. J. K. Hackman 10:40 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I am the Vice-Chairman of the Committee. The Chairman is indisposed and has authorized me to read the Report, subject to your permission.
Mr. Speaker 10:40 a.m.
Please, go ahead.
Vice-Chairman (Mr. J. K. Hackman) (on behal f o f Chairman of the Committee): Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion and to present the report.
1.0 Introduction
The hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning delivered the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government to Parliament on Thursday, 24th February 2005. Following this, the Annual Budget Estimates of the Ministry of the Interior was referred to the Committee for its consideration and report, in conformity with article 179 of the Constitution and Orders 140 (4) and 158 of the Standing Orders of Parliament.
The Committee during its deliberations on the Estimates held discussions with the Minister for the Interior, hon. Papa Owusu-Ankomah, the Chief Director and Heads of the underlisted Agencies:
(a) Narcotics Control Board
(b) Ghana National Fire Service
(c) N a t i o n a l D i s a s t e r Management Organisation
(d) Ghana Police Service
(e) Ghana Prisons Service
(f) Ghana Immigration Service.
2.0 References
The Committee referred to the under- listed documents during its deliberations:
(a) T h e 1 9 9 2 C o n s t i t u t i o n o f the Republic of Ghana.
(b) T h e S t a n d i n g O r d e r s of Parliament.
(c) T h e B u d g e t S t a t e m e n t and Economic Pol icy of t he Gove rnmen t fo r t he 2005 financial year.
(d) T h e 2 0 0 4 A n n u a l Budget Estimates of the Ministry of the Interior.
3.0 Mission Statement
The Ministry of the Interior has the mandate to ensure the maintenance of peace and internal security for all persons in Ghana. This is to be achieved by:
(a) R e v i e w i n g , formulating, implementing and evaluating policies
(b) Protecting life and property
( c) Preventing and mitigating effects of disasters
(d) Ensuring immigration control
(e) Preventing and detecting crime
(f) E n s u r i n g s a f e c u s t o d y and facilitating the reformation and rehabilitation of offenders.
(g) Reaching out to the general public by employing and establishing good relations with them.
The Ministry of the Interior believes in integrity, transparency and efficiency
by employing and retaining well-trained and disciplined personnel.
4.0 Objectives
The Ministry of the Interior intends to pursue the following objectives for the attainment of its Mission:
(a) ensure adequate protection of life and property
(b) e n s u r e e f f e c t i v e a n d efficient crime prevention and detection
( c ) improve Human and Institutional Capacity
( d ) d e v e l o p a g o o d p u b l i c relations system
( e ) s t r e n g t h e n d i s a s t e r p reven t ion and response mechanism
(f) regulate and monitor the entry, stay and exist of non- Ghanaians and the travelling public; and
(g) deve lop a h igh ly e ff i c ien t and humane custodial and refor- matory system.
5 . 0 B u d g e t a r y A l l o c a t i o n f o r 2005 Financial Year
The Min i s t ry o f the In t e r io r has been allocated a total amount of ¢637,875,000,000 to carry out its programmes and activities for the 2005 financial year as against a total allocation of ¢712,246,000,000 for 2004.
Appendix 1 gives a summary of the breakdown of allocation for 2005.
6.0 Observations and Recommendations
6.1 Headquarters
A total amount of ¢7,950,843,184 has been allocated to the Headquarters of the Ministry for the execution of its activities for the 2005 financial year as against a total allocation of ¢12,203,814,000 for
2004.
The Headquarters, like the other agencies lack modern office equipment such as computers, photocopiers and fax machines. Some offices continue to use outdated manual typewriters which make the storage and management of information difficult and time consuming. Since the effectiveness and efficiency of the security institutions depend greatly on the timely processing of information, it is important that adequate resources are provided to address this situation.
6.2 Narcotics Control Board
The Board has been given a total allocation of ¢4,950,246,988 which the Committee views inadequate to achieve its understated objectives.
The Narcotics Control Board (NCB) this year intends to commence its educational programmes in first and second cycle institutions in the northern part of the country. It will also carry out periodic servicing to keep itemisers used at the Kotoka International Airport functioning and procure other comple-mentary equipment such as digital cameras, LCD projectors, video camcorders, video decks, lap top computers, and field desk kits that are vital for the performance of its activities.
The Board will continue with the
Alhaji Boniface 10:50 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the man is misleading the House. What he
is saying now is strictly the Electoral Commission's job -- [Interruptions] -- It is not the Police's. Mr. Speaker, what he is saying, to me, is irrelevant to the House so he should address the relevant issues and stop talking about the Police. He has accepted that the Police are doing a very good job for this country, so we should accept this; we should commend them for that.
Mr. Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Hon. Member, proceed.
Nii Namoale: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. All that I am saying is that a false result was declared in two constituencies by one George Bobo Ansah. Mr. Speaker, it took the Electoral Commissioner to move from Accra to the two constituencies to go and do a recounting and it was found out that the results declared by the man were false, and when he was asked why, he said pressure was put upon him to declare those results.
Mr. Speaker, I was expecting the Police to arrest the man behind what happened in the Pru Constituency, and prosecute him in the law courts. Mr. Speaker, the Police need not sit down for somebody to tell them, “arrest this man”; the Police should go after George Bobo Ansah and prosecute him in the law courts; and let the Judge tell him that he is innocent -- because if people had not had the patience, both NDC and NPP, if they had not exercised patience, the destruction of Ghana would have started. [Hear! Hear!] So that man must be arrested.
Mr. Samuel Obodai 10:50 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, the hon. Member is grossly misleading this

by this House and approved.
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Mr. Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Order. Hon. Member, continue.
Nii Namoale: Mr. Speaker, during the Accra Sports Stadium incident, the Police did their work. That day, I was there and I saw the police doing their rightful work. Unfortunately, something happened and some policemen were taken to court. Fortunately enough, the Judge exo-nerated them.
Mr. Speaker, then came another match involving Hearts of Oak and another team, I have forgotten the name. Then some Hearts of Oak supporters destroyed some seats here and there and they were causing commotion all over the place. The Police were proactive enough and arrested two supporters of Accra Hearts of Oak, took them to court, prosecuted them and the Judge jailed them. That is the work of the Police; the Police did very, very well and I commend them for that.
Mr. Speaker, just recently, Kumasi Asante Kotoko and Heart of Lions were playing a football match. Then there was a penalty, Kotoko decided not to accept the penalty. So they said they would not play again. Some supporters, believed to be Kotoko supporters because they were in their red attire and seated at the May 9 Stand on the left hand side -- if I am standing at the Osu Stand, on my right hand side, if I am in the Commentary Box, from my left hand side. I saw them at the Accra Sports Stadium, Mr. Speaker, destroying the chairs again -- the same
Mr. Simon Osei-Mensah 10:50 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I think my hon. Colleague is grossly misleading the House and treading on very dangerous grounds, in the sense that the way he is relating the Police to issues concerning Accra Hearts of Oak and Kumasi Asante Kotoko is dangerous. Mr. Speaker, we should not bring politics into football in the first place, and sports in general. So if my hon. Friend is making his contribution, he should avoid those things. We all know what happened on May 9 and we do not want a repetition of that incident, please. And if Kotoko left the stadium, maybe they learnt that from the hon. Members on the opposite side -- that if you cannot beat them run away.
Mr. Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Hon. Member, you know you are a Deputy Ranking Member and you have 10 minutes. It seems as if you are getting to the end of the 10 minutes.
Nii Namoale: Mr. Speaker, I brought in Kotoko/Heart of Lions because I want the Police to go after those who destroyed the chairs because of the penalty. The video clips are there, they can zoom in and zoom out and get the people. Go to their Circles, go to Kumasi, go to Accra, look for them and bring them to the law courts and prosecute them.
Mr. D. H. Yeboah (NPP -- Afigya- Sekyere East) 10:50 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I wish more money could be allocated to the Ministry to fight armed robbery. Mr. Speaker, the country is under siege by armed robbers.
Alhaji Sorogho 10:50 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, my hon. Friend on the other side said Ghana Police Force. We do not have Ghana Police Force now so he must amend his records. We have Ghana Police Service; it is a service, not a force.
Mr. Speaker 10:50 a.m.
Hon. Member for Afigya-Sekyere East, this is for your information.
Mr. Yeboah 10:50 a.m.
Thank you for the correction. Mr. Speaker, the Ghana Police Service has a lot of branches like the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), Criminal Investigations Department (CID), Economic Crime Unit (ECU). But all these units, the BNI especially, are not armed to fight these armed robbers. These armed robbers are fully equipped with more logistics than the Ghana Police Service. These armed robbers are ready to operate with good cars because they can snatch anybody's car at gun-point to do their operations -- including my car, including Mr. Speaker's, everybody's. The Ghana Police Service does not have enough logistics to fight these notorious criminals. These criminals are young, from 18 to 25 years and they have authority to shoot and kill. In fact, the Ghana Police Service -- [Interruption.]
Mr. Abdul-Rauf Tanko Ibrahim 11 a.m.
None

[NII NAMOALE] Mr. Speaker: Yes, hon. Member do you have a point of order to raise?
Mr. Ibrahim 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, my hon. Colleague on the opposite side mentioned the ages of armed robbers as ranging between 18 and 25 and he made mention that they have the authority to shoot and kill. I want to find out from him, from where they derive their authority.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Let him continue. It is not a point of order.
Mr. Yeboah 11 a.m.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. They have audacity because they operate within themselves. Mr. Speaker, we need to enhance Ghana Police's operations this year. The Ghana Police Service intends to procure some office and communication equipment for effective networking.
Mr. Speaker, I think we need to add more forces like the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to combat such crimes.
Mr. Speaker, I want to compare the Ghana Police Service to United States' (US). Mr. Speaker, they have the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), State Police, Federal Marshals, County Sheriffs, Court Sheriffs, City Police decentralized and private security, which are all armed to fight armed robbers. We have Customs Excise and Preventive Service and City Guards, private security organisations in Ghana but Mr. Speaker, none of these organisations do have police authority to fight armed robbery.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
You must be winding up. You only have five minutes more.
Mr. Yeboah 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask for more money for the Ministry to help the police combat crime. Thank you

very much, Mr. Speaker.
Mrs. Alice Teni Boon (NDC -- Lambussie) 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to add my voice to the motion on floor. Let me start by congratulating the hon. Minister for having the courage today to present his grievances to this House. I know that at the end of it all, hon. Members would add their voices to the recommendations that have been made, especially our plea that the hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning should consider reviewing the scanty amount being given to this important Ministry.
Mr. Speaker, the very first day we went to listen to the hon. Minister at the committee, I looked at him and I really pitied him. He was very sad, and I was wondering what was happening. But at the end of the day, when we heard from the various Services under him, I understood why the hon. Minister was looking very sad. They have numerous problems. The group that came to talk to us, it was unbelievable.
Mr. Speaker, this is a Ministry whose personnel are like friends to all of us. Without their services, I do not know how we will be living. If they do not have the required resources, how would the Police work, how would the Immigration work, how would the Fire Service work? The Narcotics Control Board and so on and so forth; the Prisons Service -- I think that we need to look at the cry of the Interior Ministry seriously.
Mr. Speaker, when they started, we saw that almost every group that came talked about the need for training and in-service training and lack of uniforms.
Mr. Speaker, when I was young, I felt like being with the Service. Sometimes you go and meet somebody and the
uniform he is wearing is faded or patched. So the interest kept on diminishing as I grew up and at the end of the day, I advised myself.
So, Mr. Speaker, I think that we need to clothe them well; when they are well dressed, they look very smart and they can really work when they are well equipped. I think that we need to look at it.
Mr. Speaker, if we train the personnel and for two/three years, they do not go in for in-service training I think that every normal human being needs some sort of reorientation from time to time; yet they lack this. When I tried to find out from one of them, how long they take to train, say, a Sergeant after he has passed out, how many times he is given some more training, he laughed and said, “Well, it could be about once or twice”. He was not sure. And I know that maybe such a Sergeant has never gone in for any in- service training after he had passed out. So I think that we need to look at their budget again, see how best we can assist them so that they can work properly to assist us.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
You must be winding up.
Mrs. Boon. Yes, Mr. Speaker. So I think that we need to look at all that so that we can get at least a few vehicles to
support them, 4 x 4s, to enable them chase these armed robbers.
Also, Mr. Speaker, we heard from the National Disaster Management Organiza- tion (NADMO) that very soon, locusts would be attacking the topmost parts of Ghana, the northern sector. Maybe they might be attacking the topmost part, that is the northern sector. I saw it in Mali and I did not like it at all. We are lucky. In that sector, the food there, when they grow crops they do not do well, and if we should have these locusts going to attack their farms or the trees there and finally devouring all what has been cultivated, I do not know how we will manage it. It will be too much for that outfit to manage.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Please, conclude.
Mrs. Boon 11 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I am concluding. Concerning Immigration, I think there should be vehicles at the border posts for all Immigration offices at the various borders. And then, all Police in the districts should have vehicles at the district level. I think that for monitoring purposes, we should do everything to help them monitor effectively.
Mr. Speaker 11 a.m.
Hon. Member, please conclude.
Mrs. Boon 11:10 a.m.
I am so grateful to you
for giving me this opportunity. Thank you very much and I urge my hon. Colleagues to support and pass the budget.

Northern Regional Minister (Alhaji Abu-Bakar Saddique Boniface): Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for giving me the

opportunity to support the motion. Right from the beginning, one realises that the allocation to this Ministry has fallen short of what was given to them sometime last year by about ¢81 billion. And we know that the cardinal factors that contribute to the socio-economic development of an economy depend on peace, security and stability.

Unfortunately, even though we would do with what has been given, the Services or the various parts of the Ministry of the Interior are still being starved because the budget for the Police Service has been cut by about 11 per cent and that of the Prisons Service by about ¢22 billion. Meanwhile, we are talking of resourcing these Services to be able to give us good performance in the economy.

The Prisons Service is supposed to reform the people, and give them some vocation. Meanwhile, they do not even have the tractors, because they need to convert most of these things to help support the inmates. Unfortunately, what is supposed to go to them is not even enough to take care of their administration and services or their personal emoluments, not to think of what is to be used in training the people in the prisons.

The Police and the Prisons Services are almost in the same situation. They do not have proper accommodation. Mostly, they live at the mercy of landlords and the landlords have turned themselves into contractors. When somebody has a case, he has to fall on the landlord to intervene and if the policeman refuses, he is given an order, maybe three months or a year, to vacate the premise. So I think it is high time we supported these Services by giving them their own accommodation.

Of late, everybody knows that right now in Ghana or in West Africa or in Africa, the Ghana Police Service and the Prisons Service are the best because if you look at their dressing, they appear smart
Mr. Speaker 11:10 a.m.
Let us have one more contribution before the Minister sums up.
Maj. (Dr.) (Alhaji) Mustapha Ahmed (rtd.) (NDC -- Ayawaso East): Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion for this House to approve the sum as stated on the Order Paper for the services of the Ministry of the Interior for the 2005 fiscal year.
Mr. Speaker, in supporting this motion, I wish to express concern about a few issues which I believe would need urgent attention by our Police Service. Mr.
Speaker, last week, we heard of a report of armed robbery on the highway near Techiman. Mr. Speaker, the armed robbers had a lot of space to even interrogate and subject their victims to inhuman treatment after which they stole all their money, collected their mobile phones, jewelleries, et cetera. Mr. Speaker, if the Police Service is able to put in place an effective highway patrol system, this type of nasty incident may not occur on our highways again.
Mr. Speaker, another area of concern to me is the frequent breakdown of vehicles on our highways, especially cargo trucks. They break down, they are left wherever they have broken down for a few days and sometimes mechanics even attempt to repair them at the place where they broke down. This also calls for an urgent need for the setting up of effective highway patrols with the necessary equipment so that when a vehicle breaks down, the police highway patrol can effectively tow such a vehicle to a designated area for a fee.
Mr. Speaker, I also would like to raise concern about the recent increase in the use of unlicensed motorbikes, like these tiny motorbikes that are all over the cities now with most of the riders not having licences. They do not use the recommended crash helmets and most of the time they use these bikes in stealing, snatching mobile phones, snatching handbags from ladies, and so on and so forth. I believe that the police can do a lot to bring such culprits to order by making sure that such vehicles are licensed and then the users made to wear the appropriate gear.
Mr. Speaker, with this short contribution I wish to call on all hon. Colleagues to support this motion so that the Police and the other Services under the Ministry of the Interior can perform their duties to
enhance private sector activity in this country.
Papa Owusu-Ankomah 11:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to thank hon. Members for supporting this motion. I take this opportunity to assure the House that even with the paltry sum allocated to the Ministry of the Interior for its activities, this year will be a year of action. The agencies under the Ministry will continue their transformation work so as to make the country safe and secure for all its citizens.
Question put and motion agreed to.
Resolved:
That this honourable House approves the sum of ¢637,874 million for the services of the Ministry of the Interior for the 2005 fiscal year.
Mr. Speaker 11:10 a.m.
Leadership, which is the next motion?
Mr. A. O. Aidooh 11:10 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, if we may take motion No. 9 before No. 6.
ANNUAL ESTIMATES 11:20 a.m.
Minister for Information (Mr. Dan Botwe) 11:20 a.m.
Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that this honourable House approves the sum of one hundred and forty-two billion, three hundred and seventy-six million (¢142,376,000,000) for the services of the Ministry of Information for the 2005
  • [MAJ. (DR.) (ALHAJI) AHMED fiscal year. Mr. Speaker, the Minis t ry of Information in its policy management process, plays a key role in facilitating the communication of information on all government business. Its activities are aimed at developing policies, which will provide support towards information processing and delivery by the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies. The Ministry places emphasis on the need to help create a knowledge-based society to enhance participatory decision-making and promote good governance. Mr. Speaker, the Three-Year Medium- Term Plan Process rolls over annually and captures objectives which reflect the mission of the Ministry to formulate policies which will facilitate information management within the sector, facilitate the free two-way flow of timely and reliable information and feedback between Government and its various publics and to develop information policy. Mr. Speaker, it is the mission of the Ministry to co-ordinate, monitor and evaluate the implementation of programmes and activities of its agencies. The Ministry also facilitates or helps to create the right environment to generate necessary understanding and support of the public for the policies and programmes of Government to facilitate their realisation through adequately trained, motivated and committed staff. It is the vision of the Ministry, Mr. Speaker, to have a free, united and informed and prosperous society with good governance through development communication. In so doing, it is the objective of the Ministry to strengthen institutional capacity for effective policy formulation and execution, to ensure free flow of relevant public information in pursuance of open government policy. In the year 2005, Mr. Speaker, in terms of outlook, the following are some of the activities that the Ministry intends to pursue: an enhancement of mainstreaming of development communication in all programmes and projects of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), which will be pursued to promote the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS); continued public sensitisation of the GPRS programme and its achieve- ments in collaboration with National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) and the MDAs; enhanced collaboration with Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development on public education on good governance; strengthening the Information Services Department's (ISD) operations in the regions, districts and communities to promote MDA collaboration with the private sector to facilitate its growth. Mr. Speaker, in order to implement these and many other activities during the 2005 budget period, the Ministry has been allocated the sum of ¢142,376 million. The breakdown is as follows: General Administration -- ¢27,242,353,242 Ghana Institute of Journalism -- ¢3,445,206,177 National Film & Television Institute -- ¢9,881,068,305 Ghana News Agency (GNA) -- ¢10,239,944,104 Information Services Department -- ¢19,687,058,192 Ghana Broadcasting Corporation -- ¢71,880,369,980 improved conditions of service for the lecturers and salary levels equal to those in the universities in order to retain the lecturers. A third concern is the absence of a suitable vehicle to convey students to the countryside for practical work. The Institute has therefore been allocated ¢9.8 billion. The Ghana News Agency (GNA) has been allocated an amount of ¢10.2 billion. The Agency will require additional resources to purchase at least three pick-up vehicles, a server and some computers to improve the mobility of staff on one hand and news gathering and transmission on the other, to satisfy its clients better. Mr. Speaker, it was shocking to note, when I paid a visit to the GNA, that no regional directorate of the GNA even has a pick-up to itself. The Information Services Department (ISD), which is the major implementing Agency of the Ministry of Information, has been allocated the sum of ¢19,637,058 mil l ion. Under the development communication enhancement programme, the ISD will enhance its operations in the regions and at community levels through the revamping of existing information centres and the opening of additional new ones, to supplement the community information centres being established in collaboration with the Ministry of Communications. The circuitry public education programmes on government policies and programmes would be intensified in collaboration with the MDAs. It is necessary, Mr. Speaker, to recruit staff for the districts, to improve the cinema van numbers and other vehicles for monitoring or for operations and the exhibition of various publicity materials nationwide. Mr. Speaker, the minimum number of cinema vans required to cover all the one hundred and thirty-eight districts will be ninety-eight. But as at now, the Department has about forty vehicles, some of them as old as twenty years. It is important, Mr. Speaker, that the populace, the whole country is sensitised on government programmes. Mr. Speaker, the Minis t ry of Information and, for that matter the ISD do not exist only to propagate government programmes but those of all the various arms of government -- the Executive, the Judiciary, and this honourable House of Parliament. I am sure many Members of Parliament will love to have Information Services vans in their constituencies helping to explain and propagate the work of Parliament -- [Hear! Hear!]
    • Alhaji Sumani Abukari 11:30 a.m.
    On a point of order. Mr. Speaker, I have a point of order against the hon. Minister, who is my good friend.
    Mr. Speaker, the hon. Minister is supposed to present the Budget of his Ministry but, I think occasionally, he forgets that he is no more the General Secretary of the NPP -- [Laughter.] He veers off to make very political statements and to campaign for -- This is not a campaign platform; he is presenting the budget for the Ministry, please.
    Mr. Speaker 11:30 a.m.
    Hon. Minister, please continue.
    Mr. Botwe 11:30 a.m.
    Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was trying to emphasise the need to increase the ISD vans so that we can cover the country more effectively and explain policies and programmes of all the arms of government -- the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary.
    Mr. Speaker, the Ghana Government portal, www.ghana.com.gh is a reliable and authoritative one-stop point for
    Chairman of the Committee on Information (Mr. Akwasi Afrifa) 11:30 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to present the Report of your Committee that looked at the Budget Estimates of the Ministry.
    1.0 Introduction
    The draft Budget Estimates of the
    Ministry of Information for 2005 was referred to the Select Committee on Communications on 24th February 2005 for consideration and report in accordance with Standing Order 140 (4). This followed the presentation of the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government to the House on the same day by the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, hon. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu (MP) in accordance with article 179 of the Constitution and Order 140 (1) of the Standing Orders of the House.
    The Committee met with the Minister for Information, hon. Daniel Botwe, a technical team from the Ministry, Departments and Agencies of the MOI and officials from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MOFEP) to consider the Estimates and reports as follows:
    2.0 Background
    3.0 Reference Documents
    The Committee, during its delibe- rations, referred to the following documents:
    The 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana.
    The Standing Orders of the House.
    Message on the State of the Nation by H.E. the President to Parliament (January 2005).
    The Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Govern-ment of Ghana for the 2005 Financial Year.
    2 . 2 M i s s i o n S t a t e m e n t a n d Objectives of the Ministry
    The Ministry of Information exists to facilitate the free flow of timely and reliable information and feedback between
    the Government and the public and to assist the development, co-ordination and implementation of policies. It is also to create the right environment and generate the necessary understanding and support of the public for the realization of the policies and programmes of the Government
    To execute this mandate, the Ministry has some of its objectives as:
    1. to ensure free flow of relevant public information in pursuance to the open government policy;
    2. to effectively and efficiently monitor and evaluate public responses to government policy, programmes and activities to provide timely feedback to Government; and
    3. to project the image of the country, in collaboration with other government agencies, to attract foreign investment in consonance with the government's policy of promoting the Golden Age of Business.
    The Ministry works in concert with the following Departments and Agencies to execute its mandate:
    The Information Services Depart- ment (ISD)
    The Ghana News Agency (GNA)
    The Ghana Broadcasting Corp- oration (GBC)
    The National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI)
    The Ghana Publishing Corporation
    (GPC)
    The Ghana Institute of Journalism
    (GIJ).
    TABLE I 11:30 a.m.
    COST CENTRE AMOUNT 11:30 a.m.
    Mr. Haruna Iddrisu (NDC -- Tamale South) 11:30 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion for the approval of funds for the Ministry of Information to continue with its agenda of getting the Ghanaian public well and adequately informed, not misinformed, on government policies and programmes over the years.
    Mr. Speaker, the Ministry operates through many agencies, one of which is the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation. I wish to crave the indulgence of Mr. Speaker, that there is a growing public perception that Ghana Television, in particular, does not appear to give meaning to the constitutional requirement of giving fair and equal access in its coverage.
    A case in point is that just close to the last Presidential Elections, the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) organized a major public event to inform the Ghanaian public about the different programmes of the political parties. Ghana Television was conspicuously missing at the coverage of that major political activity, and the Minister would be helping this House and Ghanaians if he is able to discipline them to ensure that all political parties are assured of fair and equitable access. I am not saying equal -- we appreciate that there is the Government and there is the opposition, but fair and equitable access.
    Mr. Speaker, another important institution under the Ministry which requires urgent public attention is the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ). The Ghana Institute of Journalism, over the years, has operated under the Ministry of Communications.
    With the proliferation of the mass media and the increasing number of publishing houses and electronic media houses, and recognising the commendable role that the Ghanaian media have played over the years in ensuring that we have an informed citizenry, it is only important that as a country we strengthen our only educational institution, apart from the University of Ghana and the recent private entity, so that the GIJ is able to groom well educated and informed media persons to contribute to our democratic process and the development of Ghana.
    But, Mr. Speaker, specifically, the operation of the Ghana Institute of Journalism under the Ministry of Communications prevents that particular institution from benefiting from the Ghana Education Trust Fund, otherwise referred to as the GETFund; and I think that the Minister must take steps to delink the
    Ghana Institute of Journalism and place it under the Ministry of Education and Sports so that it can come under close supervision of the National Council for Tertiary Education. Indeed, as we are speaking, the Ghana Institute of Journalism cannot boast of a student population of more than 300 students, but our expectation as a country is that it should be able to train, at least, 1,000 journalists and public relations officers within the span of one year. That can only be done if resources are made available. In fact, it is with regret that the investment budget of that particular institution was not given adequate consideration by the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning.
    I think that it would be important that as the Report is captured in its entirety, some Highly Indebted and Poor Countries (HIPC) resources be found so that the school can fast-track its development project of a school building somewhere in the country.
    Mr. Speaker, quite apart from that, the Ghana News agency (GNA), a very important public news institution is inadequately funded, especially in terms of logistics -- no computers, no vehicles, not even any of their regional offices can boast of a mobile vehicle. I think it is important that we strengthen the Ghana News Agency because many of our media houses, especially those concentrated in Accra source their news through the Ghana News Agency.
    It is therefore important that they are adequately equipped with both computers and vehicles to be able to discharge this constitutional mandate. There are some problems associated with even the National Film and Television Institute
    (NAFTI).
    Finally, Mr. Speaker, the Information Services Department (ISD) in many of the district and regional offices do not have
    Mr. B. D. K. Adu (NPP -- Okere) 11:40 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, thank you once again for the opportunity to lend my support to the budget of the Ministry of Information.
    Mr. Speaker, I want to dilate briefly on the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI). The hon. Minister told us in moving the motion that NAFTI is in rented premises; that is not good enough Mr. Speaker, I am told NAFTI started -- and I know -- many years ago, twenty years and over and NAFTI has trained almost all the West and East African filmmakers. Nigerian filmmakers, most of them were trained at NAFTI. Today, Nigerian films are a clamour; everybody wants to watch Nigerian films.
    But the school which trained these filmmakers has not yet found its feet. Why should NAFTI be in rented premises up to this time? Mr. Speaker, normally, it is cheaper for an organisation to build a house or offices rather than ren it. I know, for the period that this house had been rented, if a bold decision had been taken for a permanent office to be built for them, it would have been far, far cheaper. Mr. Speaker, I therefore urge Government that budgetary allocation for NAFTI should be
    released. We are told budgetary allocation for them for the past year was not released. This is not good enough, and by so doing it makes the work of the Ministry very difficult.
    Mr. Speaker, also on the cinema vans, it was a joy, just as the hon. Minister said, when we were young, you hear that a cinema van was coming to town. We were informed of the nation's aspirations, we were entertained. But today it is a luxury to see a cinema van in the interior or at a remote constituency. Mr. Speaker, I will urge the hon. Minister, and the Government -- [Interruption.] How much would it cost? Can we not sign bilateral agreements with other countries to help us with the cinema vans?
    I am asking; this is a question. As we get donors help in other situations, is this not possible? Mr. Speaker, I know when the budget, which is even woefully inadequate, is fully released to the Ministry, a lot would be done.
    Mr. Speaker, with this few contribution, I lend my support for the approval for the budget for the Ministry of Information.
    Ms. Akua Sena Dansua (NDC -- North Dayi) 11:40 a.m.
    Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. You are very gender-sensitive.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion on the floor and particularly to associate myself with all the points raised by hon. Members who have spoken earlier. I just want to add, briefly that we all know that the Ministry of Information is the Public Relations (PR) outfit of Government and so a lot of resources tend to be committed to the centre, to the detriment of Departments, Agencies and
    Mr. J. D. Mahama (NDC -- Bole/ Bamboi) 11:40 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I thank you for your indulgence. Considering that my hon. Colleague was very brief, I will just use the rest of her time. [Laughter.] Mr. Speaker, as a former Minister for this sector, I think that I know enough about the sector to point out a few things in this approval process.
    Mr. Speaker, this is one sector where donors are very reluctant to commit funding, because they view the outfit as a kind of propaganda machinery for Government. But Mr. Speaker, information dissemination is very important. If the State must move forward and Government
    must carry the people along with its programmes, it needs to be able to explain those programmes to the people, cutting across all sectors, from agriculture to energy -- to everything. So this is one Ministry that I think, unfortunately, is not being funded as well as it should from government sources and then from donor sources. I think that should be addressed.
    Mr. Speaker, with regard to the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ), I find it very intriguing that its Legislative Instrument (L.I.) has not come to Parliament yet. I remember that the first draft Legislative Instrument was prepared when I was still the Minister. And so five years on, since 2000, the fact that this L.I. has not reached Parliament yet, I find very intriguing. We need to find out what is keeping this Legislative Instrument.
    The Legislative Instrument will shift GIJ from being under the Ministry of Information to the Ministry of Education and Sports. Now, if we pass that L.I., it will immediately qualify the GIJ to receive funding from the Ghana Education Trust (GET) Fund, instead of us waiting till we have amended the GETFund Bill before GIJ can begin to receive assistance.
    Mr. Speaker, the Ranking Member has already said that the investment budget is too low. For an institute that is developing a new campus, seven hundred and something million cedis, Mr. Speaker, is certainly a little amount.
    Mr. Speaker, with regard to NAFTI, the impression was created by my hon. Colleague from Okere that NAFTI is housed in rented premises; that is not exactly correct. NAFTI was housed in some premises that had been confiscated to
    Mr. Speaker 11:40 a.m.
    You may wind up now.
    Mr. Mahama 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, if you say I should wind up, then I will just wind up on the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). Mr. Speaker, we instituted the National Institutional Renewal Programme and among the State institutions that were captured under this programme was GBC. There was a programme to wean GBC off Government of Ghana Budget so that it could become a self-financing institution.

    If you look at the budget, we are paying ¢36.7 billion in remuneration and emoluments for Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) staff. Now the

    impression was that GBC would become self-financing so that they could pay their own staff and be able to carry out the duties that they are supposed to do.

    Mr. Speaker, they can only do this if we assist GBC to increase the financing that they have access to; and one of these is TV licence fees. TV licence fees have remained at ¢3,000 for almost the last ten years or so. Mr. Speaker, the licence fee is not worth the collection, it is not even worth, in some cases, the value books that have to be issued in receipt. And so as quickly as possible, if we can bring TV licence fees to more realistic levels, like ¢10,000 or ¢15,000 a year, it would make it worth collecting, and I think that they would bring in more money to GBC and make it self-financing.

    Mr. Speaker, with this very restricted time imposed on me, I support the motion.
    Mr. Speaker 11:50 a.m.
    Hon. Minister, please wind up.
    Mr. Dan Botwe 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I thank hon. Members of this House for the concerns and contributions which have been respectfully noted. I wish to assure them all that the Ministry of Information is open to all and will keep to its mandate in order to improve upon information dissemination and to realize its vision of having a free, united and informed public.
    Question put and motion agreed to.
    Resolved:
    That this honourable House
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 11:50 a.m.
    Mr. Samuel Johnfiah (NPP -- Ahanta West) noon
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to second the motion and in so doing I want to present the Report of the Committee on Food, Agriculture and Cocoa. I will crave your indulgence to read only the conclusion whilst the Hansard Office captures the full report.
    c. Human Resource Development and Management Unit
    d. Irrigation Development Authority
    e. ICOUR
    f. Grains and Legumes Development Board
    g. Crop Services Directorate
    h. Root and Tuber Improvement Project
    i. Animal Production Directorate
    j. Agricultural Extension Services
    k. Agricultural Engineering Services
    l. Plant Protection and Regulatory Services
    m. Veterinary Services Directorate n. Veterinary Council
    Prof. A. Wayo Seini (NDC -- Tamale Central) 12:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, listening to what has been happening in this House, it looks as if every sector is a priority area. We also know that our resources are limited and this is why there should be priority among the priorities. We identified agriculture as the priority among the priorities because I believe we all ate this morning before we came to this House, and we will continue to eat in order to keep fit. That is why we need to prioritise agriculture among the priorities. I am not surprised therefore that the budget for agriculture has been increased substantially this year over last year's budget.

    Mr. Speaker, we still need a lot of investments in the agricultural sector. We need to encourage the private sector, particularly private businessmen to take up certain activities in the agricultural sector. In the last year's Budget, that is 2004, provision and incentives were made for the private sector, particularly for businessmen to take up agro-processing. Unfortunately, this is not happening and we need to encourage them more to invest more in agriculture in order to take some of the burden off the farmers.

    Mr. Speaker, we also need to ensure that some of these major programmes in agriculture are sustainable. If we take the Land Conservation and Smallholder Rehabilitation Project, it is coming to

    an end in March this year and it is being funded by donors. Mr. Speaker, we have to ensure that such projects which help in the development of agriculture are sustainable.

    In the past, there had been projects like that, URADEP, VORADEP and the Agricultural Productivity Promotion Programme (APPP) by the United States of America and so on and so forth. And all these special projects funded by donors, normally, when they come to the end, are not sustainable. They are not sustainable because we do not make resources available for them to be continued.

    Mr. Speaker, another area is grains and legumes development. The Grains and Legumes Development Board was set up in the Second Republic to ensure that high-yielding seeds or grains and legumes were made available to farmers. Unfortunately, the Board has taken up additional responsibilities. They also produce cassava sticks and other planting materials which they were not mandated to do. So we hope that in the course of time maybe the mandate of the Grains Development Board would either be changed or they would be told to do what they were set up to do.

    Mr. Speaker, it is worth noting that efforts are also being made to provide machinery for the development of our agriculture. It is very important in the sense that it is really back-breaking for our farmers to continue to rely on hoes and cutlasses. But having said that, Mr. Speaker, I think there is also the need for us to have complementary inputs that go with mechanization, like seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, weedicides and so on and so forth. Unfortunately, we do not have these produced locally and, in fact, the prices of these commodities are getting out of hand. Fortunately, Mr. Speaker, we can invest in areas like extension work so that they can teach our farmers to get some alternatives, to some of these imported inputs, to our
    Prof. A. Wayo Seini (NDC -- Tamale Central) 12:10 p.m.


    farmers.

    For example, we could concentrate and expand the teaching of the farmers to produce compost and to use green manure in their farming activities. These sources of soil fertility maintenance are adequate to increase agricultural production, particularly with respect to grain production. Mr. Speaker, even in the world today, many people prefer commodities that are produced that way; in other words, they prefer products that are organic in nature rather than those produced by fertilizers.

    Mr. Speaker, it is heartening that the budget for agriculture has been increased but we still need to do more; it is the priority among the priorities. It is the sector where we can increase the income so that other sectors can benefit.

    Mr. Speaker, I would like to conclude by saying that there is a curious relationship between per capita income and the level of agricultural development. Our per capita income at around $400 tells us that we are still at the subsistence stage, and we would be moving into the diversified agricultural development stage if we can push this per capita income to around $600 to $1,000. But this we all know can come only through the agricultural sector.

    Even though there is a lot of investment in the agricultural sector, we still need to do a lot in the area of agro-processing and particularly, in the area of cocoa which is the lifeblood of the agricultural sector and indeed the nation. At the moment most of our cocoa are being exported as cocoa beans. But we do know that if we add value to it and export as cocoa butter and other products we would be earning more, not only in the international market but

    also creating jobs here at home. So long as we do not process a lot of the cocoa at home, we are not going to be able to produce or generate enough employment in the sub-sector; and yet it is the biggest sector of agriculture and the economy.

    But Mr. Speaker, having saying that does not necessarily mean that we have to invest in big, big machinery or large machinery in order to process cocoa. We can do cottage processing of cocoa if our trade partners would allow us to export processed materials. Seriously, I have been listening to the comparison of Malaysia and Ghana on BBC of late and they say that one factor that has made Malaysia what it is is that they invested a lot in agriculture and education.

    We need to do a lot of investments in agriculture and at the farm level. If you take palm oil, for instance, in Malaysia, they even can process and produce and add value to the project at the farm level, rather than sending it to the large-scale processing plant.

    Mr. Speaker, having said all these, I would like to support the motion and to urge my hon. Colleagues to vote massively for it.
    Mr. S. N. A. Attoh (NPP -- Trobu/ Amasaman) 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, thank you for giving me the floor to add my voice to the motion, that this august House approves the 2005 budget of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
    As we all know, agriculture is the backbone of Ghana's economy. As evidenced by the outstanding growth performance of 7.5 per cent towards Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2004 and then 6.1 per cent achieved in 2003 which reports that growth was accelerated by cocoa, as mentioned, Mr. Speaker, there is the need to keep the pace if not achieve higher.
    Mr. Speaker, agriculture is also established as the largest employer of labour in this country; that can be seen on page 15 of the printed copy of the State of the Nation Address by His Excellency the President. In this era where youth unemployment must be progressively addressed, there is the need to create an enabling environment to aggressively address youth unemployment. And this calls for creating an enabling environment to attract and to employ not only the youth but other entrepreneurs and foreign investors into the sector. Mr. Speaker, in the President's State of the Nation Address, he emphasized the need to modernise our agriculture mainly by mechanised means, which would naturally employ machinery.
    Mr. Speaker, to fully achieve our desired goal, there is the need to put resources or enough resources into research, land or soi l and water management, livestock development and production, crop development and production projects, veterinary services, agriculture extension, ICT improvement within the sector for relevant data and information on agriculture, particularly with regard to rainfall; and also women in agriculture development, plant protection and regulatory services amongst others; and also special programmes such as storage and processing to add value for food security and more particularly to create seed banks for our agriculture; and last but not least, to ensure that we produce enough raw materials for our local industries and for export.

    Mr. Speaker, after all said and done, man and the very vital sectors of crop, livestock and fisheries basically require water to thrive -- crop production in particular. Unfortunately, 48 years after independence, agriculture in Ghana still thrives or is depending on natural
    Mr. J. Y. Chireh 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I have a very serious point of order to raise and it is so serious that I need to take my time and explain. We have the Budget Statement by the Minister, and at page 124 he says:
    “To carry out its programmes and activities the Ministry of Food and Agriculture has been allocated ¢642.9 billion comprising a GOG of ¢220.6 billion (of which IGF is ¢10.9 billion) and donor funding of ¢422.3 billion.”
    Mr. Speaker, that figure originally by the Committee Report came to 632. And I know that most committees are asking for more money for the sectors,. So for this Committee to be reducing the amount that was allocated by the Minister, and read to us, is a serious matter. If you also look at the revision that was made on the Order Paper, we have a different figure.
    Now, I have also said before, that Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of Environment and Science has the same problem. Today, the same thing occurred in the case of the Ministry of the Interior and Information. So what I want us to correct before we go ahead is, which of the figures are we dealing with? These are official figures, and we are dealing with budget figures; we are not just talking here about policy. So what are we approving? What is being stated as being given to what Ministry? I want to know.
    But in the case of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, the figures are added up. We should have a clear position because I remember that the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning today used to bring a calculator during the Budget debates and added all. He is an accountant, so I would like him to clarify the figures.
    Mr. Speaker 12:20 p.m.
    Hon. Member for Wa West, this is not a point of order to what he is saying. You may raise it at the appropriate time. Hon. Member, please you continue.
    rose
    Mr. Speaker 12:20 p.m.
    Deputy Minority Chief Whip, do you have another point of order to raise?
    Mr. E. T. Mensah 12:20 p.m.
    Yes, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the issues raised by hon. Yieleh Chireh are fundamental to the approvals that we are giving; so if we may spend some time to look at the issues raised and address them, it will help all of us.
    Mr. Speaker 12:20 p.m.
    The point I am making is that it should not be at this time. You may raise it but it is not a point of order to what he is saying. You will have time to raise it, but not now. Let him finish, please.
    Mr. Attoh 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, as I was saying -- [Interruption.]
    Mr. Speaker 12:20 p.m.
    And then you must wind up, you have five minutes.
    Mr. Attoh 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, in winding up, the success or failure of agriculture in Ghana, of good crops harvest and others, is dependent on adequate rainfall, well distributed throughout the year. Maybe this explains why farmers and fishermen are more godly because every now and then, we keep praying and begging God to let the rains come. Our neighbours in the Sahelian regions -- Burkina Faso, Tunisia and Egypt -- do not get much rain. Their agriculture thrives on irrigation facilities.
    Mr. Speaker, I hope that this august
    House will do well to approve the Budget Estimates which have been increased by about 60 per cent this year for the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. Mr. Speaker, if the saying that a healthy mind in a healthy body is what we need, then I pray this august House to approve the budget for MOFA, for 2005.
    rose
    Mr. Speaker 12:20 p.m.
    Yes, hon. Member for Wa West, now you can contribute.
    Mr. J. Yieleh Chireh (NDC -- Wa West) 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, in contributing, I want first of all to again mention, concerning the figures that we are dealing with that first, we have this; and if we consider this as the parent law you, as a lawyer , do know that when you have an Act, other subsidiary legislations can emerge from it. If this is so, the Minister gives a Ministry ¢642.9 billion; then the Committee on its own reduces it to 635 billion, when I know that at the end of it all each member of the Committee says we want more money for the sector. And I raised it when the Estimates of the Ministry of Environment and Science were being approved -- [Interruption.]
    Prof. Seini 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, this error has to do with the budget for the Fisheries Department which we corrected yester- day. If you look at what happened, there was an amount of ¢7 billion from fisheries levy that has been added to the agriculture budget; so if you subtract that ¢7 billion, it comes to exactly the ¢635,179 million that the Minister is asking for. We subtracted it and added it to the Ministry of Fisheries, in order to get the correct figure -- yesterday. So that is the mistake; otherwise, the figure that the Minister is asking for is correct and it does not disturb anything.
    Mr. Chireh 12:20 p.m.
    So Mr. Speaker, when the Ministry of the Interior came on board, to use your terminology, we had an extra ¢95 million -- [interruptions.] What I am saying is that we have documents. If after the debate, these documents will be revised, fine; otherwise we are dealing with so many figures that we need to know which figure we are giving approval for.
    Mr. Baah-Wiredu 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, my contribution is that the reference document, or the approved figures by Parliament, which normally would be published in the Votes and Proceedings, will form the basis of the Appropriation Bill. So that will be the point at which we will be looking at these things, if there are any variances. But once the House has approved and then we have picked the figures in the Votes and Proceedings, that is where your calculators and your pocket personal computers would be working. So if we used to bring calculators here, we were always referring to the Votes and Proceedings' figures, as against what would be brought in the Appropriation Bill. So Mr. Speaker, the reference document is the Votes and Proceedings; and those are the figures we are going to use.
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 12:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, in respect of the figures for the Ministry of the Interior, as the Minister indicated, the figure stated on the Order Paper is ¢637,874 million. Mr. Speaker, here, he corrected it to ¢637,875 million because the additions here do not tally --
    just by one million -- and that is what he drew our attention to. I thought the hon. Member had understood this. Just like yesterday, he came to me and we did this for the other Ministries and he understood. So I am surprised that he is bringing them up again.
    Mr. C. K. Humado (NDC - Anlo) 12:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion moved by the hon. Minister for Food and Agriculture. Whilst I support the motion, I also wish to raise some issues of concern and also to make some suggestions for his consideration.
    We all know, and it is common knowledge that the foodcrop and livestock subsectors are the backbone of food security in this country. However, in the presentation of the budget on Agriculture, I noted that the performance of the previous year, which is 2004, and in the outlook for the current year, no mention was made about the food security situation of the country. The food situation in the country, I believe, is what informs the programmes and activities and the prioritization of budgetary allocations to the Ministry.
    Mr. Speaker, let me give an example. At the end of year 2003, data provided by the Statistics, Research and Information Directorate of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture showed that the production of maize, rice and yam fell below the previous year's production levels. So it would have been appropriate if, in 2004, some information was provided on the production levels of these crops to enable
    Mr. C. K. Humado (NDC - Anlo) 12:30 p.m.
    the Committee, Parliament and civil society know the trend and know whether the production levels of these crops have recovered or they are still declining.
    This information was not available to the Committee and it is not even available in the public domain. What we hear from various parts of the country - in Monday's issue of the Daily Graphic, page 26, column 1, there are reports from the Upper East Region of imminent food shortages.
    On a Radio Gold programme there were reports from Dormaa Ahenkro, from the poultry farmers association, that an appeal was made to Government to import yellow maize. Mr. Speaker, this is why I think that the Ministry needs to present a situation analysis as a preamble to the budget. This would inform the programmes and activities and the focus and the priorities in budgetary allocation that should be made within the year.
    I am also informed about sky-rocketing prices of products in our neigbouring Sahelian countries such as Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso. This also has the tendency of sharing with us what is already produced in Ghana. And I have just given these examples to show that we need that kind of information, which should direct the programmes and activities of the Ministry.
    Mr. Speaker, I also wish to urge the hon. Minister that one of his directorates, the Statistics, Research and Information Directorate, which provides information, is under-resourced. I know this for a fact because I did some work with
    them. Since 1999, the capacity of data collection has reduced. In fact, most of the livestock figures that are presented are just estimates, compared to the actual census that they used to do in the past years. I therefore wish to urge the hon. Minister to look at this critically and resource that Department in order for it to provide him with the planning information that he needs to direct the Ministry.
    Also, the presentation of GDP for agriculture is now combined. The crops sector is combined with the livestock sub-sector, and I wish to suggest that this is not good for planning. We need to disaggregate the two GDP rates in order to focus on the problem areas and find solutions to them. We also need to improve the GDP on agriculture by including other crops, which are presently not included in the calculation. We have horticultural crops -- pineapples, oranges and other crops -- which are not part of these calculations. I think that if that Department is properly resourced to bring on board some of these crops, then we can enhance the GDP calculation on agriculture for the Ministry.
    Lastly, there are several outstanding legal issues of the Ministry -- the Quarantine Bill, the Grains and Legumes Development Board Bill and other issues of legal nature. We also have a situation where taxes and levies charged by some of the directorates such as PPRS need to be reviewed. They have proposed this for the past three years and nothing has happened. I urge the hon. Minister to look critically at these things in order to create the enabling

    environment for these directorates to move forward.

    Mr. Speaker, with these few observa- tions and comments, I wish to add my voice to others that the House should votes massively to approve the budget for the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
    Mr. E. T. Mensah (NDC - Ningo/ Prampram) 12:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion that this House approves the sum of ¢635,179 million for the services of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. Mr. Speaker, in doing so, I wish to raise a few issues which the hon. Minister is very conversant with.
    Quite often, we hear on radio and various media, Ghanaians comparing the strides that other nations have made in agriculture with those of this nation without looking at how they went about theirs - the details of how they went about it, how they addressed the concerns which are the problems of our farmers in this country.
    Number one is the land issue, which we have been dodging as Governments since independence; it is something which has to be faced promptly. I am saying this because my grandfather owned several cocoa farms in the Abuakwa area and many of my people are in farming so I know what I am talking about.
    Many of the people f rom my constituency are also tenant farmers outside the constituency. The problems that they go through, with the Abunu and the Abusa, and all manner of archaic systems, have to be addressed for us to move forward as a people. People talk about the Afram Plains; the land is there.
    People want to farm, but start there and you are in trouble. So Mr. Speaker, the land issue is something which, as a government or as a people, we need to confront and address.
    Mr. Speaker, I want to move to Greater- Accra and Greater-Accra Rural. The issue of mechanization -- we talk about tractors, tractor services, but these are difficult to access, because the people do not have what it takes. There was a time, at the beginning, when service centres were created and tractors were pooled. With the extension officers working there, they provided seedlings and what have you. I want the hon. Minister to look at the tractors that they have got. If he can pool them, create service centres for the farmers, go and clear the estate, whatever estate that they have, give them seedlings, give them extension services and work out an arrangement where the payment would be spread, we will be getting somewhere.
    Access to credit has been very difficult. I remember five years ago when we went to the Agricultural Development Bank to look for credit for the farmers, just ¢150,000 for them to be able to finance the clearance of the farm and it was very difficult. Access to credit is something we need to look at.

    Irrigation. I am not talking about big irrigations but just dugouts because when you move into the area during the dry season, which is almost about eight months in a year, the land cannot get water; everything dries up there. So whatever we are doing with regard to the Accra Plains Irrigation Project, whose feasibility has come a long way, let us look at the dugouts as well. I believe that we need our experts in the offices to move out. I want to suggest that you organize an outreach, for instance, to Greater Accra Rural, sit with the people and listen to
    Mr. Speaker 12:40 p.m.
    Minister for Food and
    Agriculture, you may wind up.
    Mr. Ernest Debrah 12:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker,
    I want to thank hon. Members for the contributions that they have made on my Ministry's budget.
    However, I want to make a few comments, with regard to the points raised by the hon. Member for Tamale Central about processing. I think the nation is moving forward with regard to adding value to the crops that we produce. It may interest you to know that the Cocoa Processing Factory is now expanding its operations; they are installing new machines and I think that by the end of this year, we shall move from processing 25 to 30 per cent of cocoa beans produced in Ghana to 55 - 60 per cent of cocoa beans produced in Ghana.
    Again, it may also interest you to know that maize grits are now produced for our breweries and a lot of our breweries are now using maize grits produced out of maize for brewing beer and other products, as opposed to importing hops and others from outside the country. So the nation is gradually making progress with regard to adding value to its produce but more efforts need to be made, and we shall work harder in trying to improve our effort in that direction.
    With regard to the issue raised by hon. Member for Ningo-Prampram, the issue of land tenure is something that the nation has to deal with and I think it is being tackled by the new Land Reform Policy.
    Regarding tenant farmers, every region and every tribe has that problem. We see farmers from Brong Ahafo and Ashanti Regions moving to Sefwi to go and farm and they face the land tenure problem. We see Northern Region farmers coming to Brong Ahafo Region to farm and it is the same land tenure system. We see persons from Brong Ahafo and Ashanti Regions moving to the Northern Region to rear cattle. So the land tenure problem is all over this country and I think the land
    reform that is going on will take account of that.
    Having said that Mr. Speaker, I want to thank hon. Members for their invaluable contributions. I will take their concerns on board and I want to assure them that with their support, I think we will make good progress this year in agriculture.
    Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
    Question put and motion agreed to.
    Resolved:
    That this honourable House approves the sum of ¢635,179 million for the services of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture for the 2005 fiscal year.
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 12:40 p.m.
    NORRIP 12:40 p.m.
    CEDECOM 12:40 p.m.
    TOTAL 12:40 p.m.
    Mr. M. A. Asaga (NDC -- Nabdam) 12:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, thank you very much. I rise
    to support the motion and urge the House to give approval for ¢449,125 million for the Services of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning for the 2005 fiscal year.
    Mr. Speaker, the Chairman has already given some of the details but the comments
    I have are as follows: First, the Ministry called the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, for me, sometimes creates problems when we know that there is the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) which is also supposed to be in charge of planning.
    Even though there is a debate as to whether the NDPC is for long-term planning or short- term planning or medium-term planning, I think that we, as Parliament, must come out
    clearly and show the difference between what the NDPC is supposed to be doing and what the Economic Planning wing of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning is supposed to be doing.
    If we cannot see our way clear, then I think that the words “Economic Planning” should be removed from the Ministry's name; and part of the short-term and medium-term planning should be given to NDPC. This is because there is always
    appointments and they see their pay slips, they get demoralised and then vacate their positions. So all these are issues, which Dr. Nduom must take note of when he is dealing with public sector reforms. If we want our public sector to perform, then salaries should be made very attractive.
    Still on Controller and Accountant-
    General's Department, we noticed that their software, as has been indicated, is old. But I do not think it is a question of being old. I think that there is a dispute about the software managers, whether it should be Oracle or another computer firm. I hope that the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning would get in touch with the providers of the software so that this issue would be resolved amicably. The Oracle software was supposed to have been installed in the year 2000 when the National Democratic Congress (NDC) was in government. Since then, there has been that dispute and for almost four years, the Ministry has not been able to resolve this issue.
    I hope that this issue would be permanently resolved, that up-to-date software would now be put in place, so that with the touch of a button in the Office of Dr. Akoto Osei, he should be able to know what is happening in the Controller and Accountant-General's Department. He should be able to know what is happening at Bank of Ghana or a notorious Ministry like the Ministry of Road Transport, where expenditure is very high and flying all over.
    Mr. Speaker, I wish also to mention
    Mr. K.O. Agyapong 12:50 p.m.
    On a point of
    order. Mr. Speaker, I raise an objection to the statement just made by my hon. Friend. He said and I quote: “a notorious
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    Hon. Member for
    Mr. Asaga 12:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, well, I do not
    know how he heard it.
    Mr. Speaker, I think that there should
    Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu 12:50 p.m.
    Mr.
    Speaker, on a point of order. Mr. Speaker, I clearly heard my hon. Colleague use those words. Now, he appears to be suggesting that he never said so. I think that is incorrect. He said so. So if he realises that the use of those words is offensive, let him withdraw them and go on peacefully.
    Mr. Speaker 12:50 p.m.
    Hon. Member for
    Nabdam, I said I did not hear those words but did you use them?
    Mr. Asaga 12:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I was trying
    to hold you in high esteem that since you did not hear me and since you are in charge here, then I should be seeing it as ignored.
    Mr. Speaker 12:50 p.m.
    Hon. Member for
    Nabdam, I did not but if you said it, then kindly own up and say you did use those words.
    Mr. Asaga 12:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I would want to withdraw the word “notorious”
    Mr. Speaker 1 p.m.
    You said this in conclusion, I suppose.
    Mr. Asaga 1 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, yes. On this note, I would want the new Minister for Finance and Economic Planning to be very firm with the Office of the President -- [Interruption.] I think the microphone system did not want me to say the next line so thank you, Mr. Speaker.
    Capt. Nkrabeah Effah-Dartey (rtd.) (NPP -- Berekum): Mr. Speaker, I also want to crave your indulgence to add my voice to the call for the adoption of this motion for budgetary support for the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.
    Mr. Speaker, I would also want to dwell on just one point and that is the Ghana Statistical Service. In other countries, where they are far advanced, they base their development mainly on statistics, making sure that they have adequate up- to-date statistics of persons living in the country, and the number of staff in the various fields. In every conceivable area of human activity they can provide you with statistics, and that is why we have the Ghana Statistical Service.
    Mr. Speaker, as borne out clearly in
    the Report, the Ghana Statistical Service is beset with a lot of difficulties, problems and limitations and is mainly based on inadequate qualified staff. So I would urge
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    May we call the Minister to wind up.
    Mr. Baah-Wiredu 1 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I thank hon. Members for their contributions. Article 86(3) of the Constitution states that the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) shall be responsible to the President. So where it reports to is very clear, and it is constitutionally guaranteed.
    Mr. Speaker, article 87(2) (a) of the Constitution states as follows 1 p.m.
    “The Commission shall, at the request of the President, or Parliament, or on its own initiative
    -- 1 p.m.
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 1 p.m.
    Chairman of the Committee (Mr. Akwasi Afrifa) 1:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion and in doing so, I would also like to submit the Report of the Committee on Communications that looked into the budget Estimates for the Ministry.
    1.0 Introduction
    The draft Budget Estimates of the Ministry of Communications for 2005 was referred to the Select Committee on Communications on 24th February 2005 for consideration and report in accordance with Standing Orders 140 (4) and 182. This followed the presentation of the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government to the House on the same day by the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, hon. Kwadwo Baah- Wiredu (MP) in accordance with article 179 of the Constitution and Order 140 (1) of the Standing Orders of the House.
    The Committee met with the Minister for Communications, hon. Albert Kan- Dapaah (MP), a technical team from the Ministry, Departments and Agencies of the MOC and officials from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning
    (MOFEP) to consider the Estimates and reports as follows:
    2.0 Background
    2.1 Reference Documents
    The Committee referred to the following documents during its deliberations:
    The 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana.
    The Standing Orders of the House.
    Message on the State of the Nation by His Excellency the President to Parliament (Jan. 2005).
    The Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government of Ghana for the 2005 Financial Year.
    Report of the Select Committee on Communications on the Annual Estimates of the Ministry of Communications and Technology for 2004.
    2.2 Mission Statement and Objectives of the Ministry
    The Ministry of Communications (MOC) exists to facilitate the development of a reliable and cost-effective world- class communications infrastructure and services driven by appropriate technological innovations to enhance the promotion of economic competitiveness in a knowledge-based environment.
    The MOC works in concert and through its Agencies, which are tasked to handle specific functional areas in line with the Ministry's objectives to execute this mandate. These Agencies fall broadly under two subsectors -- Telecom- munications and Technology.
    Telecommunications Subsector
    National Communications Aut- hority (NCA)
    Ghana Telecom (GT)
    Ghana Post Company Ltd.
    Meteorological Services Depar- tment (MSD)
    Technology Subsector
    Kofi Annan Ghana-India Centre of Excellence in ICT (KACE)
    In pursuance of its mission statement, the MOC, and its MDAs, has, among others, the following objectives:
    to promote the development of nationwide communications and technologies infrastructure back- bone and services;
    to facilitate the provision of quality meteorological service for effective delivery of meteorological data and forecasts in weather sensitive sectors of the economy;
    to review and develop policy regulations and laws that will enhance the capacity of well- functioning and self-financed regulatory bodies dedicated to the sustenance of a pro-competitive Information Communications; and
    to develop and promote commu- nications and technology culture at all levels of the society.
    3.0 2004 in Retrospect
    TOTAL 1:10 p.m.
    Mr. Haruna Iddrisu (NDC -- Tamale South) 1:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, with your indulgence, I beg to support the motion for the approval of ¢26,776 million for the Ministry of Communications.
    Mr. Speaker, the amount itself is woefully inadequate compared with the ¢35,174 million that the Ministry got in the preceding year, 2004 and as we are able to understand what accounts for it. Nonetheless, the Ministry discharges its obligations through some agencies such as the National Communications Authority and the Meteorological Services Department.
    But Mr. Speaker, the Ministry has a mandate to allow for the development of a reliable cost-effective communications infrastructure that nonetheless is significant for the development of our country. Many of us have often spoken about the world being a global village; it is a global village to the extent that we make the best use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT).
    But Mr. Speaker, I specifically, in
    Mr. E. K. Salia (NDC - Jirapa) 1:20 p.m.
    Mr.
    Speaker, I rise to support this motion and to add my voice to the calls made by previous contributors. But more importantly, my concerns are with respect to the operations
    of the internet service providers.
    I believe that the policy of liberalization which gave rise to the free establishment of Internet facilities has led to some abuse of the system by these providers based upon the cost - the charges that are levied on the users are so high that I believe that there is the need to take a second look at the freedom we gave them. Mr. Speaker, this is because most of them do not provide quality service and there are months that no connection can be made between the various users and the internet service providers and yet, because of the fact that the charges are fixed at a monthly rate, you pay for so much and still have inadequate use of the service.
    I would therefore like to call on the hon.
    Minister to let the regulatory body, which is the National Communications Authority, which up-to-date has really not been exercising any regulatory responsibility over internet service providers to take a second look at that so that we can call them to order and so that with the competition that we are beginning to have, those rates can come down. People are rarely sincere based upon the quantity or the number of people who are now using their services, but it appears that there could be a little bit of collision going on such that the rates are not going down as fast as we would have wanted.
    Mr. Speaker, the other thing I would
    like to talk about is the rural telephony and even the expansion of mobile services in this country. A lot of the districts or even regions of this country still have very inadequate coverage of the mobile cellular services. With Spacefon, Kasapa, OneTouch and the old one, Mobitel, I expected that by this time every part of this country should have been covered by mobile telephone services. But if you take Wa, for instance, the Upper West Region, apart from the Wa town and maybe within one or two kilometres radius, there is
    no mobile communication in the entire region.
    I believe that the improved tele-density rates that have been given, have been necessitated and have come up largely because of cellular networks. It appears to me that since the cellulars or the mobile phones depend on the fixed network there is an urgent need to expand more of the fixed services.
    At the present time, if you take the tele-
    density of the fixed network, it is nothing to write home about; the better coverage has been necessitated or occasioned by mobile services. And I believe that in previous times, telephone coverage, the density was not calculated by using even the mobile services and that is why this looks so good. But in reality, there is still a lot to do by way of telephone provision throughout this country.
    I would like to urge my hon. Colleagues
    to encourage the various actors to use the GIFTEL to expand further to a lot of rural areas. This is because even though the President gave his vision about the connection of various senior secondary schools with telephones, I can assure most of you that this is still an unrealized dream as less than 50 per cent of the senior secondary schools throughout this country have been covered by the telephone network.
    I would therefore want to urge the
    Ministry to insist upon the rapid roll- out of fixed network throughout the country. I believe that the National Commu-nications Authority needs some strengthening; maybe, the law that established it even needs revision because the vision, the telephone vision, or the telecommunication vision of the 1990's needs to be changed now because of the improvement in technology. And it is one of those sectors that expand so rapidly that
    virtually every year, a new technology is introduced. So if you do not change your policy or your strategy, you are more likely to remain behind the rest of the world, unless you can do something to improve the regulatory framework of the sector.
    Finally, Ghana was involved with the
    ECOWAS and Regional African Satellite Communication Organisation (RAS- COM); they were trying to establish a satellite system for the West Africa Region. For a long time now, I have heard nothing about it and it does not look like it is active these days. I would like to know, in the summing up by the hon. Minister, what is happening to the RASCOM, which was one of the main focal points of telecommunication development in the last couple of years as these days nothing is heard of it.
    On this note, I would like to call on all
    my hon. Colleagues to vote massively for this motion. It seems to be one of the self- financing Ministries that does not depend too much on the Government of Ghana and so this small amount should not be a problem as far as approval is concerned.
    Mr. Speaker 1:20 p.m.
    Minister for Commu-
    nications, would you kindly wind up.
    Mr. Kan-Dapaah 1:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, let me thank hon. Members for the very good comments that they have made. Mr. Speaker, let me comment on this question of tele-density. I think that what has been achieved in that area is a solid achievement and we should not seek to underplay that. The rise in the use of mobile phones is truly to be expected, that is the trend everywhere in the world, people now prefer to use more mobile than the fixed service.

    The need to improve upon the quality
    BILLS -- FIRST READING 1:30 p.m.
    PAPERS 1:30 p.m.
    -- 1:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker 2:40 p.m.
    Hon. Members, we shall
    have an extended Sitting and so we will suspend Sitting and return at 2.30 p.m.
    The Sitting was suspended at 1.35 p.m.

    Sitting resumed.
    MR. SPEAKER
    Mr. A. O. Aidooh 2:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, may we take motion number 10. We would seek your indulgence to permit the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning to take this motion for us.
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 2:40 p.m.
    AMOUNT 2:40 p.m.
    Mr. K. A. Okerchiri (NPP - Nkawkaw) 2:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, we are all aware that this Ministry is a nascent Ministry, a very young Ministry concerned with the very survival, willy-nilly, of this institution. It must be able to get sufficient money, as it were, to be able to execute its functions and I am on all fours with the Report of the Committee that the amount therein stated, as it were, must be granted and approved for them to be able to run the Ministry. Mr. Speaker, I thank you very much.
    Mr. E. T. Mensah (NDC -- Ningo- Prampram) 2:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I also stand to support the motion on floor and in doing so to speak to a couple of issues raised under the mission statement. One of the issues is to enhance, promote and develop a democratic culture among all sections of the people as well as build positive image and confidence in the Ministry, as it were.
    When we talk about enhancing and promoting the development of democratic culture it entails education, and in that regard there will be the need for a machinery to be put in place to address that issue which we could in turn draw upon. So in spite of the fact that it is a young Ministry, the mission statement of the Ministry is very important to us. It is something that I have raised very often
    in Parliament. There is the perception out there that Assembly members would have to provide certain things like places of convenience and markets and then Members of Parliament are also added to this.
    This is something that has to be dealt with because so much money is sent to the districts. One example is that Develop- ment Budget is sent to the districts for the administration of the districts, for the provision of these things, but because of lack of knowledge about the way things work, the people turn round and look for ‘‘coat-hangers'' who happen to be Members of Parliament or the District Assembly members.
    We even talk of creating platforms to educate the people at the level of the Assembly. It costs money. You have the IPA system -- [Interruption] - They always want to blame somebody for what has not happened. The Assembly member cannot create a platform to explain what happens in the Assembly to the people when he is not paid and he needs money to buy chairs; even if it is being done under trees you have to hire some chairs.
    The chief has to give them some place so you need resources to be able to do this. So this Ministry's mission statement is quite perfect and I want to suggest to my very good Friend, the hon. Minister, that come next year, we would quadruple whatever it is that we want for this Ministry so that at the need of the day it
    would be in our interest and in the interest of everybody.
    With this, Mr. Speaker, I want to end by appealing to Colleagues to vote massively for the paltry sum which is being given to the Ministry, to begin with.
    Mr. Speaker 2:40 p.m.
    The hon. Minister may wish to wind up.
    Mr. Baah-Wiredu 2:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I thank hon. Members for their useful contributions and I believe all the points have been taken note of. We need to develop our parliamentary culture and we
    hope that these funds would support us to move forward.
    Question put and motion agreed to.
    Resolved:
    That this honourable House approves the sum of ¢7,280 million for the services of the Ministry for Parliamentary Affairs for the 2005 fiscal year.
    Mr. A. O. Aidooh 2:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, we once again seek your indulgence to permit the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning to move item 11 for the Public Services Commission.
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 2:40 p.m.
    Mr. E. T. Mensah (NDC -- Ningo- Prampram) 2:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I support
    the motion on floor and would want to support what the Deputy hon. Majority Leader said.
    When you look at the Observations and Recommendations of the Committee, it has been stated that the Public Services Commission (PSC) has a problem. Even the building that they operate in is dilapidated, so you can imagine what equipment would be in there. Probably 10th century typewriters are what they have in this day when we have computers all over the place.
    So I believe that it will be necessary for the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to find money because anytime a request is made by this Commission for money to do something about the building, nothing was done. I think that if we can even do it in phases instead of just not giving them what they need -- We have just talked about capacity-building and the need to monitor the public services and to report to the Government. These things cannot be done without inputs and the inputs can only be acquired by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning giving the PSC enough resources to be able to address their concerns.
    With these few words, Mr. Speaker, I urge my hon. Colleagues to vote for the motion and also appeal to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to try and do something about this Commission.
    Mr. Speaker 2:50 p.m.
    Minister for Finance
    and Economic Planning, do you have anything to say?
    Mr. Baah-Wiredu 2:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I
    thank hon. Members for their devotion to ensure that we develop our human resource as we improve upon our revenue generation, and cover a wider area. And I believe that whatever sums are available will be pumped into these sectors to make sure we achieve our results -- because human resource development is very important.
    Mr. Baah-Wiredu 2:50 p.m.


    On that note, Mr. Speaker, I move accordingly.

    Question put and motion agreed to.

    Resolved:

    That this honourable House approves the sum of ¢3,864 million for the services of the Public Services Commission (PSC) for the 2005 fiscal year.
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 2:50 p.m.
    Mr. E. K. D. Adjaho (NDC - Avenor/ Ave) 2:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion.
    Mr. Speaker, just today your Committee of Public Accounts met the Auditor- General and in our interaction with him and as it has also been captured in the Committee's Report, I think that if we want them to perform their constitutional responsibility under article 187 of the Constitution, then they have to be seriously resourced.
    Mr. Speaker, one issue which is of worry to many of us in this House is the fact that when the Audit Service goes to audit somebody, the auditee is supposed to pay the auditor. And Mr. Speaker, how then can the Audit Service perform its independent constitutional responsibility if the auditee is supposed to pay the auditor? I think that if Government is very serious about the work of the Audit Service then sufficient resources ought to be made available, outside the auditee's organization, to pay them; they can perform that constitutional role.
    Mr. Speaker, at this stage we would only want to support this motion and plead that in the course of the year, a critical look would be taken at the Audit Service, especially the policy where the auditee is supposed to pay the auditor. We have to shift from that policy directive and then see to it that in the course of the year, resources are made specifically available
    for that purpose.
    Recently, I saw a letter signed by the Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, Dr. Akoto Osei, that money be taken from Exploration Levy to pay auditors auditing Ghana National Petroleum Corporation. I was surprised and I could not understand that policy. I believe that we are not serious as a people and as a nation and something must be done about it.
    Mr. Speaker, with these few words, I support the motion.
    Mr. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu 3 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I thank hon. Members for their
    contributions. I think a day may be set aside in due course for us to debate fully the pros and cons of that policy that he just mentioned. I think we need to sit down and exploit other opportunities to make sure we pay for the services of the Audit Service.
    On that note, Mr. Speaker, I humbly want to move accordingly.
    Question put and motion agreed to.
    Resolved:
    That this honourable House approves the sum of ¢96,666 million for the services of the Audit Service for the 2005 fiscal year.
    Mr. A. O. Aidooh 3 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker,
    motion number 13, in respect of the District Assemblies Common Fund
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 3 p.m.
    Chairman of the Committee (Mr. A. O. Aidooh) 3 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion and present the Report of the Special Budget Committee on the 2005 Budget Estimates of the District Assemblies Common Fund Administrator.
    1.0 Introduction
    The 2005 Annual Estimates of the District Assemblies Common Fund were referred to the Special Budget Committee for consideration and report in accordance with the 1992 Constitution and Standing Orders of the House following the presentation of the Financial Policy of the Government for the year ending 31st December 2005. The Committee met with the Administrator of the Fund and reports as follows:
    2.0 Background
    2.1 Reference Documents
    The 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana.
    The Standing Orders of the House.
    Message on the State of the Nation by the H.E. the President to Parliament (January 2005).
    The Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Govern-ment of Ghana for the 2005 Financial Year.
    2.2 Aims and Objectives of the DACF Administrator
    The DACF exists to equitably distribute part of the National Tax Revenue to the District Assemblies for development. This is done through, among other activities:
    i. Developing an agreed sharing formula for approval by Parlia- ment;
    ii. Administering and distributing monies allocated into the Common Fund to the District Assemblies in accordance with the approved formula; and
    iii. Ensuring fairness and transparency in the distribution and administra- tion of the Fund.
    Some of the DACF's objectives include:
    to establish a comprehensive system for monitoring and evaluating releases to District Assemblies;
    to ensure the effective utilization of funds to alleviate poverty; and
    to undertake periodic impact assessments of the Fund on development and poverty reduction in the various districts.
    3.0 The 2005 Budget Estimates of the District Assemblies Common Fund
    A total of ¢961,000,000 has been allocated to the District Assemblies Common Fund to be disbursed as follows:
    Personal Emoluments
    -- ¢230,000,000.00
    Administration
    -- ¢343,000,000.00
    Service
    -- ¢20,000,000.00
    Investments
    -- ¢368,000,000.00
    TOTAL 3 p.m.
    Alhaji Sumani Abukari (NDC -- Tamale North) 3 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I also wish to join my hon. Colleague in congratulating the Common Fund Administrator and to say, more grease to his elbow.
    But Mr. Speaker, having said that, I want to suggest that the Common Fund
    Mrs. Kusi 3 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, on a point of
    order. The hon. Member said every MP will bear him out that we have problems with the DCEs. I do not have any problem with my DCE.
    Alhaji Abukari 3 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, most Members of Parliament (MPs) will admit that they have problems with their DCEs when it comes to resourcing for this thing; even the hon. Deputy Majority Leader would testify to this. So if she has no problem, that is her special arrangement. So Mr. Speaker, I hope that we could -- [interruption]
    Mr. A. O. Aidooh 3 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, on
    a point of order. My problem with the Municipal Chief Executive in Tema is not with the District Assemblies Common Fund.
    Mr. Speaker 3 p.m.
    Hon. Member for Tamale North, I thought you had wound up.
    Alhaji Abukari 3 p.m.
    Yes, Mr. Speaker. I am suggesting that this House should consider seriously suggesting to Government to let us source our part from the Administrator of the DACF. He is an efficient man with a very efficient staff. I think they can handle us, so that we do not encounter the ordeal of going through the DCEs.
    Minister for Finance and Economic Planning (Mr. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu) 3 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I thank hon. Members for the issues raised on the work that is being done by the Common Fund Administrator.
    Mr. Speaker, one of the best formulas that we have in the nation is the District Assemblies Common Fund formula. The factors are very clear, very viable. The indicators are also there. You can work on that and you arrive at the formula, which is well developed.
    I believe the other issue raised by the hon. Member needs some debate. We need to work on that, because if there is something wrong we have to find out the weaknesses and then strengthen it. Mr. Speaker, as a people, we have approved a Constitution whose Chapter 20 deals with the local government system and decentralization. Are we centralizing? I have a lot of problems with other funds, which we need to improve upon.
    No nation has finished developing its
    structures, including Britain and other places. All that we have to do is to make sure that we improve upon the system. Let us focus on the realities and the issues at stake and then improve upon them. I believe we are capable of doing it and we shall do that.
    Mr. Speaker, the adequacy of funds is something that we all have to work on. It is debit and credit -- what comes in is what goes out -- so we must always work on that.
    Mr. Speaker, I thank the honourable House for debating and discussing this motion, and I move accordingly.
    Question put and motion agreed to.

    Resolved:

    That this honourable House approves the sum of ¢962,000,-000.00 for the services of the District Assemblies Common Fund Administrator for the 2005 fiscal year.
    Mr. A. O. Aidooh 3 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, may
    we seek your special permission to jump to motion number 17, which is the last item, in the name of the hon. Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, to be moved by the hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning.
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 3:10 p.m.
    Chairman of the Committee (Mr. William Ofori Boafo) 3:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion, and in doing so I wish to present the Report of the Committee.
    1.0 Introduction

    In accordance with article 179 of the 1992 Constitution, the hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning on the authority of H.E. the President presented the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government of Ghana for the 2005 fiscal year to the House on Thursday, 24th February, 2005.

    Pursuant to article 179 (5), H.E. the President caused to be laid before Parliament the 2005 Budget Estimates of the Judicial Service with his recommendations, and these were referred to the Committee for consideration and report.

    1.1 During the deliberations, the Committee held discussions with officials from the Judicial Service. The Committee obtained valuable information from the officials and through the interactions gained adequate insight into the activities of the Judiciary. Your Committee hereby extends gratitude for their participation in the deliberations.

    1.2 Reference Documents

    Your Committee availed itself of the following reference documents:

    (i) The 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana

    (ii) The Standing Orders of the House

    (iii) The Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government of Ghana for the 2005 Financial Year

    (iv) The 2005 State of the Nation Address presented by H.E. the President.

    2.0 Mission Statement of the Judicial Service

    2.1 The Judicial Service exists to ensure delivery of smooth and efficient justice to all persons without fear or favour, affection or ill-will and by so doing promote good governance in the country. The Service also strives to provide true and proper interpretation of the laws and the Constitution of Ghana and by so doing promote the growth of democracy.

    2.2 Objectives of the Service

    Pursuant to its mission statement the Judicial Service has the following objectives:

    a) to promote the Rule of Law, transparency, efficiency and expeditious administration of justice,

    b) to improve access to justice by all manner of persons,

    c) to build capacity necessary to its performance,

    d) to improve public image and confidence in the Service,

    e) to boost morale and improve conditions of service at all levels of its manpower.

    3.0 Overview of the Operations of the Judicial Service for the Year

    2004

    3.1 In the discharge of its constitutional responsibilities, the Judicial Service was provided with a total amount of ¢130,400 million in the year 2004. In spite of insufficient budgetary allocation the Judicial Service attained some successes in its operations. During the year and review, the Service provided automation to all the Regional High Courts. Moreover all the six High Courts in the High Court

    Annex Building were also automated.

    In the year 2004, the Judicial Service trained the first batch of 18 Stenotype Reporters for recording and transcription in the automated courts.

    In 2004, a total of five out of six selected District Magistrate Courts were also automated in the three Northern Regions. Magistrates have since been posted to these courts.

    As part of efforts to build its human resource capacity, the Judicial Service appointed 34 persons to undergo carrier magistrate course at the beginning of the Judicial year in 2004 and are expected to pass out soon.

    The Service has a number of development projects which are ongoing. These include the construction of the Head Office Administration block to a courts complex, phase 2 of Bolgatanga Administration Block, Rehabilitation of Hohoe Circuit Court, et cetera among others.

    These development projects have reached various stages and would be continued in the year 2005.

    The breakdown of the amount of ¢130,400 million approved for the year 2004 is as follows:

    Expenditure Item Actual Expenditure

    (¢ million)

    Personal Emoluments

    81,000

    Administration

    24,000

    Service

    5,400

    Investment
    TOTAL 3:10 p.m.
    GRAND TOTAL 3:10 p.m.
    Mr. W. O. Boafo 3:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, the
    final figure we are asking the House to consider is ¢164,804 million.
    Respectfully submitted.
    Question proposed.
    Mr. A. K. Agbesi (NDC -- Ashaiman) 3:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion and to ask that this House approves the sum stated on page 8.
    Mr. Speaker, if you take the outlook of the Judicial Service for the year 2004, the Judicial Service has performed creditably, and in the outlook for year 2005, they are asking for this sum to complete some of the ongoing projects.
    Mr. Speaker, the Judicial Service as we know is a very important organ in the administration of this country. It is one of the three arms of government and the Constitution has provided that in doing its duty, it should be independent and perform efficiently in the dispensation of justice.
    Mr. Speaker, in the Report that has been submitted, a lot of things have been said
    the staff, that help in the administration of justice. Mr. Speaker, I am referring to the court clerks and the docket clerks. These are people who assist in many ways in bringing the administration of justice to the doorsteps of the people. Mr. Speaker, I believe that the Judicial Service has a lot to do and once it is the body that holds the scales, even between litigating parties, it needs to be so independent to be able to perform its duty.
    Mr. Speaker, it is also provided in the Constitution that the allocation for the Judicial Service should be released quarterly but over the years, allocation is released monthly. Mr. Speaker, the Committee felt that this constitutional provision should be adhered to so that their independence is guaranteed.
    Mr. Speaker, having said this, I support the motion that this House approves the amount so stated.
    Mr. S. K. B. Manu (NPP -- Ahafo Ano South) 3:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to contribute to the motion seeking approval of the amount stated for the Judicial Service.
    Mr. Speaker, in doing so, I refer to the
    Mission Statement of the Judicial Service and with your indulgence, I quote 3:20 p.m.
    “The Judicial Service exists to ensure delivery of smooth and
    Mr. Haruna Iddrisu (NDC -- Tamale South) 3:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, thank you very much for the opportunity. I rise to associate myself with the motion and to urge hon. Members to massively support this motion.
    Mr. Speaker, the President in his Message on the State of the Nation to this honourable House did not mince words when he identified continuing good governance as one of his major themes. Indeed, the President has consistently made reference to the notion of the rule of law.
    Mr. Speaker, you cannot attain good
    governance unless you have an effective and functioning Judiciary to ensure that at all times the rule of law is upheld by all citizens and by all institutions of State.
    Mr. Speaker, it is not for nothing
    that with your indulgence I read, article 127(1) of our Constitution, which vests the judicial power of Ghana in the Judiciary and in particular emphasizes the administrative independence of the Judiciary. The essence of this indepen- dence is that the Judiciary as an arm of government will be independent of the two arms and perform its role.
    Indeed, Mr. Speaker, article 179(3) also emphasizes that the Chief Justice shall
    in consultation with the Judicial Council cause to be submitted to the President at least two months before the end of each financial year and thereafter as and when the need arises, the estimates of administrative expenses of the Judiciary.
    Mr. Speaker, the spirit behind this
    is to allow the Judiciary to be truly independent. I am therefore urging the new Minister for Finance and Economic Planning that in determining the budget Estimates, the Judiciary should not be one of the areas where he should exercise his gavel of always wanting to down-cut and reduce projected Estimates. It is an appeal I am making to the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning. That is why they do not come directly to him as Minister for Finance and Economic Planning but they are directed to deal directly with the Office of the President.
    Mr. Speaker, if you look, for this particular year, His Excellency the President has approved part and not all the requirements of the Judicial Service. Indeed, their investment expenditure has been reduced. Their estimates to do new recruitments, to respond to the urgent need of ensuring that district courts are functional -- and many of the courts are without judges -- were also reduced.
    It is in that particular vein that the Chairman of the august Committee moved that quite apart from what was approved by the Office of the President, the hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning would do well -- we need an assurance, especially in respect of some ¢6.2 billion as captured in the Report, to deal with the issue of recruitment in addition to what the Committee is recommending to this House.
    We need an assurance from the
    Minister for Finance and Economic Planning that some money will be found elsewhere to complement what the President has recommended for this year. Other than that, many of our courtrooms will continue to be empty; they will be without judges. They need to do some additional recruitment.
    Mr. Speaker, with these few comments, I beg to support the motion.
    Mr. E. A. Owusu-Ansah (NPP -- Kwabre West) 3:20 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion so ably moved by the hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning for and on behalf of the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs.
    Mr. Speaker, hon. Members who have
    already spoken have adequately covered a lot of the grounds. My contribution will only appear to put the spice, the icing on the cake.
    Mr. Speaker, nearly every hon. Member
    in this august House would require that the court in his area, either in his constituency or in his district, functions. But that is not the position now.
    It is provided under Act 459, the Courts Act, as amended by Act 620, that there must be at least one district court in every district in Ghana. Presently, we have one hundred and thirty-eight districts but the number of magistrates on the ground now totals only sixty-five. It means more than a half of the district courts do not have magistrates to sit in those courts. The result is that you have one magistrate sitting in, say, Kumasi who takes care of Bekwai, Offinso and some other place. It makes work very slow, and in most cases work is not done at all. This is because he will only be able to sit probably once a week though the cases keep coming.
    Mr. F. A. Agbotse (NDC -- Ho West) 3:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I would like to draw the attention of the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning to article 179 (5) of the 1992 Constitution, which states, and Mr. Speaker, with your permission I beg to quote:
    “The Estimates shall be laid before Parliament under clause (4) by the President without revision but with any recommendations that the Government may have on them.”
    What came to us in Parliament? What was laid before this House on the Judiciary is the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning's Estimates, not the Estimates of the Judicial Service. We talked about this on several occasions and I am hoping that next year when the Budget is presented it would be the Estimates of the
    Judicial Service and not the Estimates of the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning.
    I am sure he was not there when those ones were prepared so he would take note of this so that next year, it would be the Estimates of the Judicial Service with the recommendations of the President -- That is what is to come to this House, not the Estimates of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.
    Mr. Speaker, the Judicial Service is crying for space. Currently, we have commercial courts. These have been made possible by the Danish Government which funded the commercial courts. Just at the back of the Supreme Court is the Judiciary Administration Block. It has been on the block for several years. In this year's Budget, the Judicial Service has been given over ¢19 billion which would not complete or even finish the first level of that building.
    We are hoping that the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning would give the Judicial Service some money from the HIPC Fund, like they have granted some other MDAs, so that they can complete that building and free the old Supreme Court building to be used as courts instead of the ramshackle thing at the Cocoa Affairs --
    With that contribution I support the Estimates.
    Mr. Speaker 3:30 p.m.
    Hon. Minister, you may please wind up, but deal in particular with the figure in the motion and the revised one.
    Mr. Baah-Wiredu 3:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, page 279, paragraph 986 of the Budget Statement talks about the Budget time for next year; that by the 21st of December this year, we would have approved the 2006 Budget. So as you have requested, I think the Judicial Service would take note of that and then start preparing their 2006
    Budget in conformity with article 179 (3) to (6). Those provisions need to be abided by. I think we have discussed this since Parliament has been in Session.
    Mr. Speaker, I have also taken note of the quotations with regard to article 127 (1), (4), (5), (6) of the Constitution. I think these provisions are very clear. The hon. Ranking Member also talked about the quarterly releases.
    Mr. Speaker, all the contributions are very good because we quoted the expenditure side of the whole coin. But when we referred to article 160 of the Constitution, we realized that is what we have also to talk about. Because it is the issue of what that comes in and what goes out. And article 160 of the Constitution says that the fees, funds and other monies paid to the courts shall form part of the Consolidated Fund.
    Let us find out how much moneys are collected throughout the whole country and how much actually gets into the Consolidated Fund. This is because article 179 of the Constitution is obligatory; no alterations. So I believe we, as a House, must take note of this because it is the revenue that comes in that has to be shared.
    Mr. Agbotse 3:30 p.m.
    On a point of order. Mr. Speaker, the hon. Minister states that they want to know how much goes into the Consolidated Fund. As far as the Committee was made aware, the Judicial Service retains only 15 per cent; the rest of the money goes into the Consolidated Fund.
    Mr. Baah-Wiredu 3:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, 15 per cent of 10,000 is not the same as 15 per cent of 1,000,000. So if you collect 1,000,000 and it does not go into the bank account, then obviously you get 15 per cent of 10,000.
    Let us take interest in the revenue side, because as we are talking about increasing what we need, obviously, we must get it from somewhere. That is why I am
    Mr. Speaker 3:30 p.m.
    Hon. Minister, you are therefore amending what is stated here.
    Mr. Baah-Wiredu 3:30 p.m.
    Yes, Mr. Speaker. In fact, the figure quoted in the Report of the Committee, that is, ¢164,804 million should be taken.
    Question put and motion agreed to.
    Resolved:
    That this honourable House approves the sum of ¢164,804 million for the services of the Judicial Service for the 2005 fiscal year.
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 3:40 p.m.
    Minister for Finance and Economic Planning (Mr. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu) 3:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that this honourable House approves the sum of ¢12,240.3 billion for the services of Other Government Obligations for the 2005 fiscal year.
    Mr. Speaker, in doing so I just want to indicate that there are very important
    Chairman of the Committee (Mr. Samuel Owusu-Agyei) 3:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to second the motion in my position as the Chairman of the Committee.
    1.0 Introduction
    The Expendi ture Est imates of Government Financial Obligations for the 2005 fiscal year was referred to the Finance Committee for consideration and report, in accordance with the Constitution and the Standing Orders of the House, following the presentation of the Government's Financial Statement for the 2005 fiscal year.
    The Committee met with the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, hon. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Planning designate, Dr. A. Akoto Osei and Director of Budget and their technical team and reports as follows:
    2.0 2005 Estimates
    The total of amount of ¢12,240.4 billion has been allocated to be expended on the underlisted Government Financial Obligations also referred to as statutory payments, for the 2005 fiscal year.
    (in billion Cedis)
    External Debt
    -- ¢3,620.9
    Principal
    ¢2,615.3
    Interest
    ¢1,005.6
    Domestic Interest
    -- ¢2,555.0
    District Assemblies Common Fund
    -- ¢1,048.4
    Transfer to Households
    -- ¢2,927.7
    Pensions
    ¢613.8
    Gratuities
    ¢355.9
    Social Security
    ¢618.8
    (SSNIT)
    National Health
    ¢1,339.2
    Fund (NHF)
    Education Trust Fund
    -- ¢1,124.2
    Road Fund
    -- ¢883.3
    Petroleum Related Fund
    -- ¢80.8
    TOTAL 3:40 p.m.
    APPENDIX I 3:40 p.m.
    GETF 3:40 p.m.
    DACF 3:40 p.m.
    Mr. E. T. Mensah (NDC - Ningo/ Prampram) 3:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion that this august House approves the sum of ¢12, 240.3 billion for the services of Other Government Obligations for the 2005 fiscal year. Mr. Speaker, these are Government financial obligations and we cannot run away from them, so I urge hon. Members to vote massively for this motion.
    Question put and motion agreed to.
    Resolved:
    That this honourable House approves the sum of ¢12,240.3 billion for the services of Other Government Obligations for the
    2005 fiscal year.
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 3:40 p.m.
    Minister for Tourism and Modern- isation of the Capital City (Mr. Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey) 3:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that this honourable House approves the sum of ¢24,019 million for the services of the Ministry of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City for the 2005 fiscal year.
    Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of Tourism and Modernisation of the Capital City is made up of the General Administration, the Ghana Tourist Board, and the Hotel,
    HOTCATT 3:40 p.m.
    -- 3:40 p.m.
    TOTAL 3:40 p.m.
    Mrs. Alice Teni Boon (NDC -- Lambussie) 3:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I also rise to support the motion on floor and to call on all hon. Members to vote massively for the budget allocated to the Ministry of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City.
    Mr. Speaker, one cannot talk about
    tourism without referring to the importance of tourism or the important role tourism plays in our country. We have just heard
    that tourism is the fourth highest income earner in the country, but I know very well that tourism used to be the third highest income earner. And I would want to believe that if more resources are given to this Ministry, it can do better. If it used to be the third highest income earner in the country and it is now the fourth, it means that there is something wrong.
    I think that, first and foremost, this is due to lack of resources to the Ministry. As a result the Ministry is not doing its best and that is why it is the fourth; that is my understanding. So I think that there is the need for the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to re-look this important Ministry that generates some income for our nation so that it could facilitate its activities, so that it can always bring us some resources.
    Mr. Speaker, Malaysia started just like Ghana and I believe that it now does better
    than Ghana. And if you consider it, why is it that Malaysia is doing better than us? It is just that they are attaching a lot of importance to tourism; and I think that we also can do better if we do same. So I think that we need to move away from the attitude of not seeing tourism as a sector that can play a role in our lives.
    I say so because most of us here, in contributing to the President's State of the Nation Address, have said that we are proud to be Ghanaians. Much as we are proud to be Ghanaians, we must project our history, we must project the culture, we must project what we have. If we have all these tourist centres, these beautiful scenes, these undeveloped tourist centres that we could develop to show to people that, yes, we are Ghanaians and which would also give us some resources that would help develop this country, I do not think we would be doing good to this great Ministry -- So I think that we should attach more importance to tourism than what we are doing now.
    Mr. Speaker, tourism can generate a lot of jobs for our people. Let us think about carving; let us think about weaving; let us think of modelling and many other things. When we have these tourists here, they like to buy things from Ghana; even the kente that we wear, most people are proud to associate themselves with it -- the image that is being carved, modelling and many other things. So I think that as much as possible the Government should re-look the amount that is being given to the Ministry of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City so that it can help or add something to it for it to do better.
    Mr. Speaker, let us talk about the roads that lead to these tourist centres; they are not
    the best. And for me, if I travel very far to a site and see that the road leading to that site, makes me suffer to go there, I do not think that I would go there the next time. So I think that our roads need to be looked at; we should improve on the infrastructure. We should also train our people to be able to receive tourists and visitors with the language that would encourage them to be coming, or to create the atmosphere that they are most welcome.
    Mr. Speaker, I know we do not have enough time so I will end here. I am sure other hon. Members would like to talk so I thank you and I praise him for this.
    Minister for Western Region (Mr. J. B. Aidoo) 3:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, in terms of economic importance and in terms of revenue generation, the tourism sector is like a huge sleeping giant.
    Minister for Western Region (Mr. J. B. Aidoo) 3:50 p.m.


    Mr. Speaker, to enable the Ministry to actually revive this sleeping giant requires a lot of resources. To me, what has been allocated to the Ministry is even not enough, so I would urge all my hon. Colleagues here to massively approve these Estimates to enable the Ministry do the little it can to actually wake up this sleeping giant.
    Mr. S. A. Mankatah (NDC -- Odododiodioo) 4 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, it is indeed a source of exceeding joy for me to have the privilege to speak to the motion on floor for the approval of the budget Estimates for the Ministry of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City for the year 2005. a lot of young men and women in the
    country in the catering industry which is under tourism. It also gives us foreign exchange. Mr. Speaker, there is a saying that if you use meat you catch more meat. If you do not use meat you do not catch meat at all. In other words, we accept the allocation of the ¢24,019m; we accept it but it is not much. Mr. Speaker, however, there is another saying that goes like this: Half a loaf is better than none. So I will say that the allocation given to the Ministry should be looked at critically.
    But Mr. Speaker, HOTCATT, which is under Tourism is a place we have to look at. Therefore, I would want to appeal to the Minister for Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City that HOTCATT is an institution that gives professional training to people who are in the catering industry. If you look at Ghana now, our catering or tourism services are fast declining just because we do not have the personnel to take care of that sector.
    So I pray that if the hon. Minister would not be bothered, the one billion cedis given to HOTCATT should be looked at again so that instead of training a handful of personnel -- We should increase it so that these personnel will go into our national hotels to give great services.
    I also want to draw the attention of the hon. Minister that there are a few virgin tourism attractions up north, especially in my constituency, Builsa North. [Hear!
    Hear!] I know that our beaches are no longer tourism sites; they are fast deteriorating. I believe that if we go further down to the rural areas we can unearth new tourism attractions.
    Mr. Speaker, I pray that this House accepts the sum allocated although it is too meagre.
    Mr. E. T. Mensah (NDC -- Ningo/ Prampram) 4 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I want to support the motion on floor. In doing so I would want to make a few comments.
    Mr. Speaker, I want to reiterate an issue that I have raised over and over again. And it is that the President should wean off the modernization of Accra from Tourism, given the importance of Tourism as the fourth highest foreign exchange earner. Yes, the combination is incongruous. When you look at the sixth recommendation, the amount allocated for Modernization -- workshops and what have you -- When you talk about modernization of any capital city or any village, the responsibility falls on the local authority.
    Mr. Kofi Frimpong 4 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, the hon. Member is seriously misleading the House. Mr. Speaker, whilst we are talking about the vote for the Tourism industry,
    Before I continue I would want to say that modernization of the city of Accra in general and Bukom Square in particular is long overdue. I am saying this because those who know the political history of this country will agree with me that Bukom Square, for that matter, has paid its dues as far as politics of this country is concerned.
    Mr. Speaker, why am I saying so? A year after Ghana attained independence the first Member of Parliament for Ashiedu Keteke, now known as Ododo-diodioo, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, who was then the Prime Minister of this country decided to modernize Accra. Mr. Speaker, what happened for the whole idea to be shelved belongs to history. Mr. Speaker, indeed, it is needless to say what happened. And I will therefore call on all hon. Members to approve the budget Estimates and if possible call on the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to increase the allocation, looking at the activities of the Ministry for the year.
    Mrs. Agnes A. Chigabatia (NPP -- Builsa North) 4 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion before the House to approve the budget allocation of ¢24,019 million for the year 2005. But before I give my approval I have a few comments to make.
    Mr. Speaker, as you all here will agree with me, tourism is a major source of national income. It gives employment to
    the hon. Member is telling us where the President should add certain Ministries to and the allocation of certain Ministries, and whatnots. Mr. Speaker, that is not what we are talking about. We are talking about the budget of the Ministry of Tourism and not the Modernisation of the Capital City -- not where the modernization of Accra city should belong to, and not where the Ministry of Culture should belong to. He is seriously misleading the House.
    Mr. Speaker 4 p.m.
    Hon. Deputy Chief Whip, continue.
    Mr. E. T. Mensah 4 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, small boys will grow -- [Laughter.]
    Mr. Speaker 4 p.m.
    Hon. Member, please proceed.
    Mr. Kofi Frimpong 4 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I wonder why he is describing me as a “small boy”. [Laughter.] Mr. Speaker, I am a big man and I want my hon. Colleague to address me properly rather than referring to me as a “small boy”.
    Mr. E. T. Mensah 4 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I did not mention the name of the hon. Member; I said small boys will grow. [Interruptions.]
    Mr. Speaker 4 p.m.
    Order! Order!
    Mr. E. T. Mensah 4:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, when it comes to administration of cities he can be a “small boy”. But there is freedom of speech in this country; there is freedom of conscience, and freedom to recommend. The problem is that we assert every now and then that he is a listening President -- And I will be echoing first that there is a study that here culture is an orphan.

    In many, many countries culture has a lot to do with tourism, and we are saying that if we can add culture and leave
    Mr. E. T. Mensah 4:10 p.m.


    “Modernization of the Capital City” to the administrators of the city -- Because you do not know where they come in. I am talking about modernizing cities which starts from development control, monitoring of development control -- and we have waste management and all the things that we have talked about here.

    In the planning objectives of the Ministry of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City is inter-sectoral co-operation or whatever, which is very important. We have said that we want Ghana to be a preferred tourism destination; it takes a lot. As we have already said, we have to co-operate with the Ministry of Road Transport. If we want our destination to be preferred, the cost of coming here -- If you are from London and you are going to Malaysia; it is about 13 to 14 hours and you pay less than you would pay from London to Accra.

    When we talk to our brothers who come from the diaspora, it costs them less to go to other countries than coming here, and so if it is that inter-sectoral co- operation it has to do with many, many Ministries including the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development. But if that aspect is weaned off that Ministry we would be doing this country a lot of service and whatever investment we put in would be realized.

    Mr. Speaker, with these few words I want to urge my hon. Colleagues to vote massively for the provision made for the Ministry of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City. I hope by next year “Modernization of the Capital City” would be decoupled from Tourism.
    Mr. Speaker 4:10 p.m.
    Hon. Minister, you may wish to wind up if you have anything to
    say.
    Mr. Obetsebi-Lamptey 4:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I thank you very much. I thank hon. Members very much for their suggestions and concerns. We hope to be working closely with the sector committee during the coming year and possibly, since the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning is himself in the Chamber today, he may take some of the sentiments that were mentioned by hon. Members to heart in the Budget Reviews that would be coming during the course of the year. I thank you, Mr. Speaker.
    Question put and motion agreed to.
    Resolved:
    That this honourable House approves the sum of ¢24,019 million for the services of the Ministry of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City for the 2005 fiscal year.
    ANNUAL ESTIMATES 4:10 p.m.
    Minister for Health (Maj. Courage Quashigah) (retd) 4:10 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that this honourable House approves the sum of ¢4,209,689 million for the services of the Ministry of Health for the 2005 fiscal year.
    This is made up of ¢1,551,927 million from the Government of Ghana (GOG), ¢900,854 million from our donors, ¢1,339,200 million from the National Health Insurance Levy and ¢417,709 million expected from routine internally- generated funds (IGF). In so doing,
    Mr. Speaker, let me state just briefly the mandate of the Ministry, which is to promote health and vitality, protect health against diseases and injury, restore health and rehabilitate the sick and the disabled.
    Mr. Speaker, the Report is a long one, as long as the journey between life and death itself; I would try and make it very short but that does not mean that I am shortening anybody's life. [Laughter.] In pursuing our mandate, Mr. Speaker, we have achieved a few successes but in this Report what I want to do is to highlight some of the concerns and maybe what we are doing about them.
    HIV/AIDS -- I think the figures that are being brought out now are about 14,312 new cases, and the cumulative comes to a record of 90,317 since the inception of this disease. Forty (40) districts as against the target of 16 have at least one facility providing voluntary counselling and testing (VCT). Interestingly, Mr. Speaker, voluntary counselling has increased tremendously. We were targeting 5,720; we recorded 15,490 and that means that some of us here can also offer ourselves voluntarily.
    Tuberculosis (TB) -- 74 districts, Mr. Speaker, now have TB diagnostic centres.
    Buruli ulcer is emerging again in some areas but we have about 30 sentinel surveillance sites established and plastic surgeons, anesthetics and surgical teams and nurses from 11 districts have been trained to deal with the situation.
    Malaria remains our biggest problem and it is now known that malaria is defying choloroquine treatment so a new combination of Artesunate and Amodiaquine drugs are being introduced into the system in conjunction with the use of insecticide treated nets.
    Guinea-worm -- We have an obligation
    to eradicate this at least by 2006, and we are pursuing vigorously the provision of safe potable water in endemic villages to control the disease.
    Polio and measles -- No case of polio was reported last year.
    Blindness -- About 3,561 cataract surgeries against a target of 650 were performed and 138 trachoma endemic villages were also covered by the middle of 2004.
    In reproductive and child health, the response to ante-natal clinic has increased. Our target was 89.2 per cent; we recorded, last year, 91.2 per cent.
    The Ghana Ambulance Service in its pilot stage has covered 7 locations in Accra, Kumasi and Nkawkaw, with 10 fully equipped ambulances; 50 more are expected.
    Human resource development -- This is where our greatest concern also is. In 2004, the trend continued. 120 doctors, 100 pharmacists, 260 nurses left our shores for greener pastures.
    The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) has commenced but it is moving rather slowly. Sixteen (16) districts are now fully operational; 78 have started their registration and the rest have started coding streets.
    Capital investments -- Medical facilities across the country are being rehabilitated, others are being upgraded and 31 health centres were completed with support from the Saudi and OPEC funds.
    Year 2005 -- We are focusing on the NHIS which we hope should be fully implemented in this year. We are going to concentrate also on HIV prevention and support for those living with HIV/AIDS. We are developing new responses to the brain drain, let me call it, to make sure that our health professionals can remain in this country. We are expanding community-
    Mr. J. Y. Chireh 4:20 p.m.
    On a point of order. Mr. Speaker, the hon. Minister is talking about the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) being operational, and I think he is grossly misleading the House. If you are setting up bureaucracies, it does not make it operational; it does not mean that if I am sick today I can walk up to any of those places and get treatment. In fact, the operationalization of the NHIS is not what he is talking about; it is the setting up of bureaucracies and bureaucracies are different from operationalization. So he should not mislead the House.
    Maj. Quashigah) (retd): Mr. Speaker, I believe what I said was that the process is going slowly and I did say that 16 districts are operational and not the whole process. So obviously I was not misleading the House, Mr. Speaker.
    Emergency Preparedness.
    Mr. Speaker, for emergency services, the National Ambulance Service shall be made functional. Strategies aimed at the control and management of epidemic prone diseases such as CSM, Yellow fever and the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) will be enhanced. Whilst fifty (50) fully-equipped ambulances would be available, the Bill on the Ghana Ambulance Service is expected to be passed in 2005.
    Stemming the Human Resource Shortages.
    Mr. Speaker, the greatest concern about our human resources is how to produce adequate numbers to offset the attrition. In 2005 the Ministry will continue to focus attention on increasing the number of health professionals trained. Residential accommodation for staff shall be provided to enhance redistribution of staff. Additionally, an improved bonding system as well as provision of the “Deprived Area Incentives” will be further strengthened.
    Institutional Care
    Efforts to provide Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) will continue. Skills of Community Health Officers will be enhanced. Efforts will be made to link the Ghana Ambulance Services with obstetric care so as to reduce maternal mortality. In the area of mental health, institutional care will continue to be de-emphasised while anti-retroviral therapy and condom use shall be scaled up.
    Public Health Interventions
    Service provision shall lay emphasis on TB, HIV/AIDS, malaria, guinea-worm eradication, reproductive and child health, EPI, buruli ulcer and voluntary counselling and testing and also leishmaniasis, lymphatic filariasis and nutrition.
    The National T.B. Programme Drug Treatment Policy shall be reviewed to allow treatment at the community level whilst the National Malaria Control programme will be given the necessary assistance towards production, promotion and retreatment of affordable insecticide treated nets. The new anti-malaria drug policy shall be implemented in 2005. Effort to eradicate guinea-worm will be sustained and the introduction of new drugs will be pursued as part of the public health intervention policy.
    Capital Investment
    Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of Health will complete the refurbishment of the Central Medical Stores at Tema and rehabilitation of the Headquarters building. The following other works will be carried out: rehabilitation of Bolga Hospital under BADEA, implementation of ADB III Project at Tarkwa and Bekwai, and setting up of Blood Transfusion Centres in Tamale, Sekondi, Ho, Korle-Bu and Komfo Anokye hospitals.
    There will be improvement in clinical laboratory systems in selected district hospitals as well as construction of dental facilities. Six (6) district hospitals, namely Sefwi Wiawso, Winneba, Dodowa, Bongo, Kadjebi and Kumasi South Urban Health will be upgraded and equipment procured during 2004 shall also be installed to alleviate the poor equipment situation in our health facilities.
    Mr. Speaker, work on two new district hospitals will begin in 2005. These are Tarkwa and Bekwai. As part of efforts to facilitate the effective implementation of the 24-hour Health Service in the country, 9 polyclinics at Manhyia, Korle-Bu, Mamobi, Labadi, Mamprobi, Kaneshie, Old Tafo, Suntreso and Kumasi South have been earmarked for rehabilitation.
    HIPC Inflows

    Maj. Quashigah (retd): Mr. Speaker, thank you for the correction; I am being educated. I was talking about the Navrongo Hospital and the New Abirem Health Centre which will be upgraded to a hospital as well as Effiduase, Jirapa Hospital, Nsawora and Tanoso Health Centre.

    Training Institutions

    The following Nurses Training Colleges have been earmarked for rehabilitation, expansion or construction: Ho, Kumasi, Sekondi, Korle-Bu, Cape Coast, Bolga, Koforidua, Berekum, Sefwi Wiawso, Sunyani, Bawku, Jirapa, Nkawkaw, Agogo, Offinso, and Pantang. In addition, the Korle-Bu, Mampong and Atibie Midwifery Schools and the Community Health Nurses Training Schools in Tamale, Winneba and Tanoso shall be rehabilitated.

    Tertiary Level Institutions

    Mr. Speaker, in an attempt to make our Teaching Hospitals centres of excellence, major rehabilitation works would start at Korle-Bu on the following: The Medical, Maternity and Children's Blocks and offices for Clinical Genetics. Lifts shall be provided for the Cardiothoracic Centre and outstanding works on Radiotherapy Unit and Doctors' Flats shall be completed.

    Work will also be carried out on the following in Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital: the Maternity and Children's Departments, Offices for Surgeons, Doctors and Nurses Flats and the Polyclinic. Various forms of rehabilitation shall be carried out in our psychiatric institutions.

    Regulatory Bodies

    In order to make our regulatory bodies efficient, adequate office accommodation shall be constructed for the Food and Drugs Board, the Medical and Dental
    Mr. J. Y. Chireh 4:20 p.m.


    Council, Nurses and Midwives Council, Private Hospital and Maternity Homes Board, and the Pharmacy Council.

    College of Physicians and Surgeons

    The need to provide a Postgraduate Medical College in-country has become paramount to assist our medical doctors and this shall be given the necessary support. It will not only enhance the skills but will help stem the exodus of medical doctors. The construction of office complex to be used for the take-off of the college will be hastened.

    Mr. Speaker, the Christian Mission facilities, to a large extent, play a crucial role in the provision of health to the people, especially in the rural and most deprived areas. Services of the Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG) covers over 30 per cent of the country. To enable the CHAG carry out rehabilitation of some of its facilities, ¢5 billion has been earmarked for the rehabilitation.

    To carry out all of these activities requires large sums of money. Mr. Speaker, in summary, the Ministry of Health's 2005 budget provides for the following: ˘1,328,975,000,000 for Personal Emoluments; ̆ 202,834,000,000 for Administration; ˘321,360,000,000 for Services; and ˘599,612,000,000 for Investment.

    Additionally, ˘1,339,200,000,000 will be available from the National Health Insurance Levy, while ˘417,709,000,000 is expected from the Internally-Generated Funds (IGF).

    This gives the total of ˘4,209,690,-

    000,000.

    Mr. Speaker, comparing the total need of ˘7,527,700,000,000 of the Ministry of

    Health with the provision made for it in the budget, it is obvious that the health sector continues to require more funds to enable it achieve its stated mandate and levels of performance.

    Mindful however of the resource level available to Government, Mr. Speaker, and for these and all other routine services, I humbly request the House to consider and approve the Ministry of Health's Annual Estimates of ˘4,209,690,000,000 for the 2005 financial year.

    Mr. Speaker, I beg to move.
    Chairman of the Committee (Dr. Francis Osafo-Mensah) 4:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I beg to second the motion and in doing so present the Report of the Committee on Health.
    1.0 Introduction
    The honourable Minister for Finance and Economic Planning presented the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government for the 2005 fiscal year to the House on Thursday, 24th February,
    2005.
    Pursuant to Standing Orders 140 (4) and 178, the draft Annual Budget Estimates of the Ministry of Health was referred to the select Committee for consideration and report.
    A meeting was held to consider the draft Annual Budget Estimates with the hon. Minister of Health, Directors of the sector Ministry and the Schedule Officer of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.
    The Committee acknowledges their representation and commends them for their assistance.
    2.0 Reference Documents
    The underlisted documents were used as reference materials:
    i. The 1992 Constitution of Ghana; ,
    ii. The Budget Statement and Economic Pol icy of the Government of Ghana for 2005 Financial Year;
    iii. The Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) for 2005- 2007 and the Annual Estimates for 2005 (Volume 29) of the Ministry of Health;
    iv. The Annual Estimates of the Ministry of Health for 2004,
    v. The State of the Nation Address by H.E. Mr. John Agyekum Kufuor, President of the Republic of Ghana to the First Session of the Fourth Parliament of the Fourth Republic; and
    vi. The Standing Orders of the Parliament of Ghana.
    3.0 Mission Statement of the Ministry of Health
    The Ministry of Health has the following as its Mission Statement:
    i. The development and promotion of proactive policies for good health and longevity;
    ii. The provision of universal access to basic health services; and
    iii. The provision of quality health

    services that are affordable and accessible.

    4.0 Objectives

    The Ministry operates by the objectives cited below, in pursuance of its policy within the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF):

    i. To increase geographical and financial access to all basic services for all people living in Ghana;

    ii. To provide better quality care in all health facilities and outreach centres;

    iii. To improve efficiency at all levels of the health sector;

    iv. To foster closer collaboration and partnership between the health sector on one hand and communities, other sectors and the private sector;

    v. To increase overall resources in the health sector yearly;

    vi. To bridge equity gaps in access to quality health services; and

    vii. To ensure sustainable financial arrangements that protect the poor.

    5.0 Review of the Ministry's Performance in 2004

    5.1 Funds Allocated

    5.2 The House approved the sum of one trillion, four hundred and forty-nine billion, four hundred and sixty-two million cedis (¢1,449,462,000,000) under Heads 160-165 for the operational expenditure of the Ministry of Health for the year under

    review.

    5.3 This was made up of one trillion, two billion, nine hundred and sixty-nine million cedis (¢1,002,969,000,000) for recurrent expenditure and twenty-four billion, five hundred and three million cedis (¢24,503,000,000) for capital expenditure. External support totalled four hundred and twenty-one billion, nine hundred and ninety million cedis

    (¢421,990,000,000).

    5.4 Programme of Work for 2004

    5.5 The major thrust of health care delivery in 2004 was on:

    ·

    Disease Prevention and Control;

    Improving emergency prepared- ness;

    Improving health service delivery;

    Providing support for financing arrangements for the protection of the poor and the vulnerable; and Implementing s trategies for reducing brain drain of key health personnel.

    5.6 Some Achievements of the Ministry in 2004

    The Ministry was able to meet its target of commencing the provision of Anti-Retro Viral (ARV) therapy for HIV/ AIDS patients in four health facilities. 2,028 people living with AIDS were able to get ARV therapy as against the estimated figure of 2,400 for the full year. The Committee noted that the targeted figure of 2,028 was provisional and that the actual figure would be obtained when the 2004 review for the sector is completed in April this year.

    5.7 On Tuberculosis (TB) control, personnel in both public and private health institutions were trained in the diagnosis and management using the Direct Observed Treatment Short Course (DOTS) strategy. As at the end of 2004, 74 districts out of the targeted 80 districts had TB diagnosis centres. National TB cure rate of 61 per cent was achieved as against an estimated cure rate of 55 per cent for the year.

    5.8 Buruli ulcer surveillance was integrated into the routine surveillance system. Thirty sentinel surveillance sites were established and five training sessions were held for plastic surgeons anaesthetists, surgical teams and nurses involved in surgical management of the disease from 11 districts.

    5.9 On surveillance, sixty-four Emergency Medical Technicians were trained and posted to Accra, Kumasi and Nkawkaw. A new monthly surveillance form using electronic data templates was developed and used by the regions to send data to headquarters in Accra.

    5.10 On human resource develop- ment, the Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons was established and training commenced for residents. Construction and expansion works commenced on sixteen Health Training Institutions as part of measures taken by the Ministry to increase intake of students. Two new Community Health Schools were also set up in Tanoso and Fomena.

    5.11 An amount of ¢10 billion was released from the HIPC Funds to four districts for the construction of 18 Community Health Planning and Services (CHPS) compounds. Four district hospitals earmarked for upgrading were completed.

    6.0 Total Budgetary Allocation for the Ministry of Health for 2005

    An amount of four trillion, two hundred and nine billion, six hundred and ninety million cedis (¢4,209,690,000,000) has been allocated to the Ministry of Health in this year's budget. Details of the composition are indicated in Appendix A.

    7.0 Programme for 2005

    For the 2005 fiscal year, the Ministry will sustain the gains in 2004 and scale up priority health interventions. These include:

    7.1 Service Delivery

    Service provision shall lay emphasis on TB, HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Guinea- worm eradication, Polio eradi- cation, Buruli Ulcer, Oncho and Leishmaniasis and Repro-ductive and Child Health Care. Community-Based Health Planning Services (CHPS) will be emp- hasised in the four most deprived regions and hard to reach areas. Skills of Community Health Officers will be enhanced.

    Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT), provision of Anti- Retroviral Therapy, prevention of Mother to Child Transmission and promotion of condom use will be scaled up.

    The National TB Drug Treatment Policy shall be reviewed to allow treatment at the community level.

    National Malaria Control pro- gramme will be given the necessary assistance towards production, promotion and retreatment of

    affordable Insecticide Treated Nets and the implementation of new anti- malaria treatment policy.

    Efforts at eradicating Guinea-worm will be stepped up and sustained to make Ghana free of Guinea-worm within the next four years.

    7.2 Emergency Preparedness and Response

    The operations of the National Ambulance Service which is currently on pilot basis in Greater Accra, Ashanti and Eastern Regions will be replicated in the remaining regions.

    Accident and Emergency Centres in health institutions will be improved.

    Surveillance systems will be strengthened and health personnel will be trained to ensure that the health system responds appro- priately to emergencies and epidemics.

    7.3 Human Resource Development

    Human resource development will focus on increasing the number of health professionals trained through expansion of existing Training Institutions and the establishment of new schools.

    Provision of residential accom- modation for staff will be given prominence as a means of enhancing redistribution of human resources.

    Staffing levels of deprived and high- risk areas shall be improved through the provision of the Deprived Area Incentives.

    7.4 Capital Investment

    Expansion of existing training institutions would be continued.

    Implementation of CHPS in deprived regions would be intensified.

    The construction and rehabilitation of health centres nation wide would be continued.

    Five National Blood Transfusion Centres would be established.

    Seven district hospitals would be upgraded.

    Rehabilitation of Tamale and Wa Regional Hospitals would be continued.

    Provision of new offices for Regulatory Bodies and Ghana Post Graduates Medical College of Physicians and Surgeons. There wou ld be a gene ra l replacement of equipment and vehicles in selected hospitals.

    There would be a nationwide construction of staff accommo- dation for health workers.

    7.5 Collaboration and Partnership

    There will be increased involvement of private health providers, NGOs, District Assemblies, Traditional and Alternative Medicine Providers as well as communities in issues of health service development.

    7.6 Health Financing

    Financing of health service delivery will focus on full implementation of National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) with in-built protection for the poor and the vulnerable.

    The exemptions scheme will be sustained within the evolving Health Insurance Scheme and the Provisions of Act 650.

    Resource allocations will focus on improving the per capita allocation of resources to the most deprived areas.

    8.0 General Observations and Recommendations

    8.1 Brain drain of key health personnel continued to be a problem in the health sector. The Committee was apprised of measures taken to mitigate the problem, such as provision of decent accommodation and saloon cars to medical personnel. Indeed, these measures are laudable and likely to slow down the rate of exodus, but in the Committee's view, since the underlying cause/factor for the exodus is economic, the Ghana Health Service would continue to lose its trained personnel to the well-endowed economies till comparable attractive packages are introduced.

    As a way of shoring up the dwindling number of health personnel, the Committee recommends for an accelerated expansion of facilities in all existing training institutions in the health sector and a correspondent increase in the intake of freshmen/ students. The issue of bonding students from health institutions should be explored as a mechanism of retaining them in the country at least for some time.

    8.2 The Committee noted a shortfall in the Ministry's recruitment budget for 2005. Out of an estimated sum of ¢75 billion, the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning allocated ¢26 billion, leaving a deficit of ¢49 billion. In view of the critical need for trained health personnel to keep the country's health delivery system going, the Committee is of the view that shortfall in resource allocation would

    hamper Ministry's recruitment drive. The Committee urges the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to take a critical look at this variance and make adequate supple-mentary provision for it.

    8.3 An estimate for Additional Duty Hours Allowance (ADHA) by the Ministry of Health for 2005 fiscal year was pegged at ¢816 billion. The Committee observed that the sum of ¢708 billion was allocated by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, leaving a deficit of ¢108 billion.

    Whereas the Committee draws the attention of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to the above- mentioned gap, it recommends for an immediate rationalization of the ADHA.

    8.4 The establishment of the National Ambulance Service, though on pilot basis, is a welcome development in Ghana's Health Delivery System. The Committee is in agreement with the replication of the National Ambulance Service in all the regions but urges the Ministry of Health to extend it to all constituencies. 9.0 Conclusion

    The Committee recommends to the House for approval, the sum of four trillion, two hundred and nine billion, six hundred and ninety million cedis (¢4,209,690,000,000) under Heads 160-165 for the operational expenditure of the Ministry of Health for the fiscal year ending 31st December,

    2005.

    Respectfully submitted.

    Question proposed.

    Maj. (Dr.) (Alhaji) Mustapha Ahmed (rtd.) (NDC -- Ayawaso East): Mr.

    Speaker, I rise to support the motion and in doing so, just to make a few comments with regard to disease management, the National Health Insurance Scheme, the Regulatory Bodies and a few other pertinent issues.

    Mr. Speaker, malaria still tops the ten major disease that affect our people and for which reason admissions are made in most of our hospitals. In 2003, malaria cases formed 24.6 per cent of all admissions in our hospitals. And in 2004, it formed 26.9 per cent of all admissions. This means that there is an increase of 2.3 per cent. Malaria again is the major cause of deaths in our hospitals, even though in the two teaching hospitals, HIV/AIDS is the leading cause of deaths.
    Mr. G. Otchere 4:30 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I have a point of order against the hon. Member. It should not be an umbrella; it should be a canopy -- under the canopy of the people not an umbrella. [Laughter.]
    Mr. Speaker 4:30 p.m.
    Please, proceed.
    Maj. (Dr.) (Alhaji) Ahmed (rtd.): Thank you, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Speaker, these regulatory bodies all have a problem with accommodation. They have so far been in rented or temporary accommodation and all of them, due to increased activity, are yearning for new or permanent buildings. I would like to suggest, if it is possible, that the Ministry thinks about, maybe, building one giant complex that could be called Regulatory House where all of them could
    Mr. Speaker 4:30 p.m.


    be located for easy accessibility by clients.

    Mr. Speaker, the National Health Insurance Act, Act 650, was passed in 2003. To date, there are a lot of problems in the implementation of the scheme. I just wish to warn that we have to guard against the danger of unaccounted-for arrears, as occurred in the case of the GETFund. Already, there are reports of embez-zlement in some of the rural areas where collection has actually begun, and all these activities will work against the implementation of the scheme.

    Mr. Speaker, there is talk about Ambulance Service. I think it is being operated on pilot basis now. But only a few Ghanaians, where these services are located, know about the service. Now, if advertising the Service is not mutually exclusive with the provision of the service on pilot basis, I would like to suggest that we have to begin to advertise the service so that people will be aware that there is indeed, an Ambulance Service in operation.

    Mr. Speaker, with these short comments, I like to urge all to approve the sum as stated in item 18 of our Order Paper today so that the Ministry of Health can continue to deliver healthcare services to Ghanaians.
    Mr. Moses Dani Baah (PNC -- Sissala East) 4:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the motion for the approval of the Ministry of Health's budget for 2005.
    Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of Health has the responsibility of ensuring that all Ghanaians, including all of us seated here, are healthy at all times of the year. And with this huge responsibility, Mr. Speaker, you would agree with me that the Ministry of Health needs a budget much bigger than what is being requested. But, Mr. Speaker,
    in spite of the constraints of financing in this country, I believe the Ministry of Health will still be able to do part of its responsibilities from the allocation.
    However, Mr. Speaker, my interest is in the area of HIV/AIDS provision of anti-retroviral drugs. Mr. Speaker, at the moment, there are about 70 thousand Ghanaians living with HIV/AIDS and at least, in my estimation, about one-third of these people will need anti-retroviral drugs. But only about 2,000 of these people have access to anti-retroviral drugs and the access is also limited to the southern part of this country, which means that there is an urgent need to scale up the provision of anti-retroviral drugs across the entire country. And indeed, I believe the Ministry of Health will do well to expand these services beyond the present four zones that are being supported.

    Mr. Speaker, I also want to say that the National Ambulance Programme that has been started is a very laudable one especially in view of the fact that so many accidents occur especially along the Accra-Kumasi trunk road. Most often, there are no ambulances at these spots and people are handled in all forms and by the time they arrive at hospitals they are dead, or if not dead badly mishandled.

    Mr. Speaker, I am happy that the National Ambulance Service has already taken off. I know there are about ten ambulances that are in the system; another fifty are supposed to be here by this time and by the close of the year, about a hundred ambulances would be on our roads to ensure that people are quickly evacuated from accident scenes.

    Mr. Speaker, I am happy about efforts being made regarding human resource development of the Ministry of Health. Mr. Speaker, you are aware that without adequate human resources the health sector cannot function, because health functions around human beings -- the doctors, the nurses and you are talking also about patients. So the idea to expand

    the training institutions in order to enroll more Ghanaians for training as nurses and technicians is very laudable.

    Mr. Speaker, I also want to say that in the area of capital investment, here a number of regional hospitals are being expanded or rehabilitated, particularly the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital and the Tamale Regional Hospital which is undergoing some rehabilitation as well as some of the district hospitals which are undergoing rehabilitation will come well to support the National Health Insurance Programme that has also just taken off.

    Mr. Speaker, on the whole, I think that the Ministry has a huge responsibility and needs to be supported especially with the allocation of funds and resources to enable them to deliver their mandate to the people of this country.

    Mr. Speaker, with these few words, I wish to urge my hon. Colleagues here to support the motion and approve the Ministry of Health's budget.
    Mr. Felix Twumasi-Appiah (NDC -- Sene) 4:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I wish to add my voice to the motion on the floor and to make a few comments.
    Mr. Speaker, it is also said that the wealth of every nation is the health of its people and for that matter anything that is done to, as it were, improve the health of the people of the nation is a step in the right direction. However, Mr. Speaker, I wish to appeal to the Minister to take a closer look at the various extension packages that exist under this particular regime.
    It will interest you to know that the particular example that I am talking about is not disabled-friendly at all in that they do not take care of the physically impaired, in terms of the provision of visual aid; they do not take care of the hearing aids of those
    Mr. Frimpong 4:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, the hon.
    Mr. Twumasi-Appiah 4:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker,
    that is the way I talk; anybody who has heard me talk before will bear testimony that that is the way I talk. And Mr. Speaker, as I was saying, funds allocated for certain specific projects should be applied only for projects they are meant for. Just last year, an amount of ¢200 million was earmarked for the renovation of Kwame Danso Hospital but as I speak to you now that hospital has not been renovated. When a question was put to the committee of experts from the Ministry, it was explained to me that it was the new Procurement Bill that made it impossible for that amount to be used. So that amount, I believe, is still sitting in the Ministry's coffers to be used. I just want to urge the Ministry to ensure that that amount is used, and used exclusively for the purpose for which it is meant.
    Mr. Speaker, with these few words, I want to urge my other Colleagues to approve the motion.
    Mrs. Gifty Eugenia Kusi (NPP -- Tarkwa Nsuaem) 4:40 p.m.
    Thank you, Mr.
    Mrs. Gifty Eugenia Kusi (NPP -- Tarkwa Nsuaem) 4:40 p.m.


    Speaker, for giving me the opportunity to contribute to the motion on the floor to approve the budget Estimates for the Ministry of Health.
    Mr. E. T. Mensah 4:40 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, on
    a point of order. The hon. Member is misleading this House, to the extent that she said some men -- There are many more women in corners, at midnight around the French Embassy and other places, than men.
    Mrs. Kusi 4:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, if they stand
    there and nobody calls them, they can stand there till the next day; nobody will be spreading the AIDS virus around. So do not look at them, let them stand there, and they are not calling you.
    Mr. Speaker, we are all at risk. So
    I want to urge the Ministry to devise some policies because in their Mission Statement they said, and Mr. Speaker, with your indulgence I quote:
    “The development and promotion of proactive policies for good health and longevity.”
    Mr. Speaker, it is really alarming so we should as a nation think about it; because in Uganda, the person next to you is not afraid; he is not ashamed to disclose to you that he is a carrier and therefore you should be careful. But in Ghana, we do not have that policy in place and it is very, very worrying.

    Mr. Speaker, another issue is on the National Ambulance Service. Mr. Speaker, it is a very good idea that the Ministry is embarking on. But I think the Ministry has been very slow in getting it to our constituencies, especially. So if the

    private sector are involved to speed it up, I think it will be a very good idea. This is because people are dying in their numbers. Sometimes, on the roads, there are accidents and you cannot even convey the people. And if this ambulance system is in place, it will go a long way to enhance our health.

    Mr. Speaker, another worry is the slashing of the Ministry's budget for recruitment. The 2005 budget has been slashed by two-thirds. Mr. Speaker, I would like to urge the hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning to do something about this because we have a problem in our health sector. And they cannot recruit as they would want, because they themselves have said that they want about seventy-five billion cedis and this has been slashed to twenty-six billion cedis. Mr. Speaker, something should be done about it. I hope the hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning is listening to me will do something about it.

    With these few words, I support the motion.
    Mr. J. K. Avedzi (NDC -- Ketu North) 4:50 p.m.
    Mr. Speaker, I rise to add my voice to the motion to support the Estimates for the Ministry of Health.
    But before I do that, Mr. Speaker, there is a fundamental error in the Budget Statement presented by the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning on the 24th of February, 2005. I refer you to page 167, paragraph 562. The hon. Minister quoted a figure of ¢677.9 billion being the internally-generated funds of the Ministry of Health. And if you go to page 323, there is a figure there, ¢417.7 billion, being the retention of the IGF of the Ministry of Health. Now, these two figures are conflicting. This is
    a fundamental error and I think the hon. Minister is here and he can make reference and do something about it.
    Now, we all know that the Ministry of Health is a very important Ministry that holds the life of every member of this august House and, for that matter, every Ghanaian. It is a Ministry that should not be played with. It is a Ministry that must be resourced very well so that they can carry out their programmes to ensure that every Member, every Ghanaian, has a healthy life throughout the year.
    When we were discussing the Budget, we realized that there was a financing gap. The Ministry asked for ¢7.5 trillion. But here we are with only ¢4.2 trillion. There is a financing gap of about ¢3.2 trillion, which means that the Ministry cannot, with this allocation, carry out the programmes and activities planned for the year; and for that matter our health is at stake. So with this little amount provided, I would want to urge every Member of the House to support massively in approving this budget. I would also want to draw the attention of the hon. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning to the delay in the release of funds to the Ministry. Having worked at the Ministry of Health for about seven years, I know how difficult it is to operate without the release of funds to the Ministry. At the beginning of the year, if it is not the IGF the hospitals use in carrying on with their activities, it would have been difficult for them to operate.
    So I would want to call on the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to make sure that the cumbersome nature of release of funds, especially Item 3, to the Ministry should be looked at well, so that funds flow to the sector for
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    Mr. Speaker 4:50 p.m.
    Hon. Minister for Health, are you in a position to wind up?
    Maj. Courage Quashigah (rtd.): Yes, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would want to thank Members of this honourable House for the comments and observations that they have made. They are well taken except to remind all of us that health is first and foremost individual respon-s ibi l i ty; secondly, it is an inter-sectoral responsibility, as the hon. Member said. So whatever we do, let us always remember that the effects of it will reflect
    Mr. Speaker 4:50 p.m.


    on health. So that is my appeal to this honourable House; that we should be looking at ourselves; we should be looking at the society. If we decide to grow a society which is filthy, to grow mosquitoes for them to bite us and give us malaria before we go and look for drugs, then we are not doing ourselves any good.

    With this, Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, that this honourable House approves the sum so stated at item 18 of the Order Paper for the Ministry of Health.

    Question put and motion agreed to.

    Resolved:

    That this honourable House approves the sum of ¢4,209,689 million for the services of the Ministry of Health for the 2005 fiscal year.
    ADJOURNMENT 4:50 p.m.
  • The House was adjourned at 5.00 p.m. till 17th March, 2005 at 10.00 a.m.
    • APPENDIX A 5 p.m.
    INVITATION 5 p.m.