Foreword
Fellow Ghanaians, I pledged to build a Ghana that works and gives each and every one of us, the opportunity to improve our lives. Over the last 3 years and 10 months, my Government has done exactly that. We have stabilized the economy in order to create the enabling environment for businesses to grow and thrive; we have prudently managed public resources to enable us implement a raft of life-changing policies that guarantees social mobility for every Ghanaian; we have implemented social policies which have positively impacted and transformed the lives of many and we have ensured inclusive development in all parts of the country. We created six new regions and have established three Development Authorities to supervise the roll out of our development plans. We have indeed, brought development to the doorstep of every Ghanaian! However, the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic earlier this year ravaged every nation on this planet. What started as a health crisis, rapidly degenerated into global security, developmental and economic crisis. The pandemic has resulted in the largest global economic contraction witnessed in the last eight decades, accompanied by a spiraling death toll and strained healthcare systems. It has also disrupted productivity and global value chains, increased job losses and reduced family incomes, and threatens global food security particularly for the most vulnerable. Governments around the globe continue to struggle to contain its spread, with countries witnessing a resurgence in Covid-19 cases, and potentially a second wave. In Ghana, our priority has been to act swiftly and decisively to preserve lives and protect livelihoods. The well-being of the Ghanaian has been central to every decision taken, as evidenced in the 19 addresses I have given so far on measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic. We have saved lives, preserved livelihoods, expanded our health infrastructure, increased our testing facilities from 2 to 16, expanded our domestic manufacturing capacity and deepened our self-reliance. My Government has achieved all this in spite of a significant drop in revenues. However, I believe this is not enough to safeguard the future of our youth and for posterity. Over the last few years we have been charting a path to a Ghana Beyond Aid. This pandemic creates an opportunity for us to remodel and build the Wealthy, Inclusive, Sustainable, Empowered, and Resilient Ghana (a W.I.S.E.R Ghana), which is the objective of Ghana Beyond Aid. A Ghana that is prosperous and stands on its own feet; a Ghana that is beyond dependence on others; a Ghana that is industrialized and established as a Regional Hub for goods and services. The Covid-19 pandemic has sharply reminded us of the wisdom of our Ghana Beyond Aid vision. This audacious three-and-a-half year, two-phased Gh¢100 billion Ghana CARES “Obaatan Pa” Programme is Ghana Beyond Aid in action!