Coronavirus: GH¢100m Private Sector Fund created to finance govt interventions

The Private Sector has taken the initiative to establish the Ghana Private Sector ‘COVID-19 Fund’ as part of efforts to partly assist and finance government interventions in the fight against the novel Coronavirus outbreak in the country.

The rationale behind the creation of the fund is to bridge the gap of government’s reported revenue targets, its likely to miss, due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

According to a statement issued by the promoters of the fund and sighted by GhanaWeb, the Fund will equip the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and other supply chain services to ease the course against the pandemic.

“The Government of Ghana has indicated that it is highly under-resourced to handle this crisis from its current budget provisions and is exploring the procurement of a facility of US$100 million from the International Monetary Fund (IMF),” the statement noted.

“Ghana remains unsure when these funds will be available. With Government revenue targets reported to have been missed partly as a result of the impact of the virus, prospects of a successful sole government funding to fight COVID-19 remains bleak and extremely burdensome,”

“It is for this reason that the Ghana COVID-19 Fund (herein called “The Fund”) is being established to raise funding from the private sector to support the Government of Ghana’s (GoG) effort to win the COVID-19 war,” the statement explained.

The Fund was launched at a ceremony on Sunday, March 29 and will be overseen by appointed trustees, fund managers, custodians, and fund auditors to ensure that money donated will be judiciously used.

Meanwhile, President Akufo Addo on Friday night, March 27 announced the creation of a COVID-19 Fund with three months of his salary as a seed fund support.

According to him, the fund will go to support the well-being of individuals who will be adversely affected by the novel Coronavirus pandemic.

On Sunday, he inaugurated the Board of Trustees of the COVID-19 National Trust Fund, at a brief ceremony at Jubilee House.

The Board of Trustees, which is chaired by former Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo, will receive contributions and donations from the public to assist in the welfare of the needy and the vulnerable.