FULL TEXT: John Dramani Mahama's speech on Ghana’s economy

Former President, John Dramani Mahama has asked the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo-led administration to cut cost, reduce waste, and spend wisely. Speaking at an event dubbed “Building the Nation We want”, on Thursday, October 27, 2022, Mahama said, one way to do this is to reduce the size of his government. He also advised the government to abolish or realign state institutions with similar functions while suspending non-essential projects. Again, the 2020 flagbearer of the NDC backed calls for the dismissal of the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta from office; adding that his removal will not affect the ongoing negotiations between Ghana and the IMF. "A big contributor to the excessive public expenditure is the sheer size of government. President Akufo-Addo has been particularly irresponsible in keeping a needlessly large government. At a point, we had over 120 ministers in his government with hundreds of political appointees at the Presidency and others attached to ministers and state organisations. "While the President has cut down this number, there is still room for a further reduction including merging some Ministries to reduce expenditure and cut down the number of Ministers to below 65. It is also necessary to trim the large number of political appointees who have sought refuge in the Flagstaff House. This will reflect the necessities of the time and the need for modesty and prudence" John Dramani Mahama noted. Find his full speech below:

Former President, John Dramani Mahama has asked the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo-led administration to cut cost, reduce waste, and spend wisely. Speaking at an event dubbed “Building the Nation We want”, on Thursday, October 27, 2022, Mahama said, one way to do this is to reduce the size of his government. He also advised the government to abolish or realign state institutions with similar functions while suspending non-essential projects. Again, the 2020 flagbearer of the NDC backed calls for the dismissal of the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta from office; adding that his removal will not affect the ongoing negotiations between Ghana and the IMF. "A big contributor to the excessive public expenditure is the sheer size of government. President Akufo-Addo has been particularly irresponsible in keeping a needlessly large government. At a point, we had over 120 ministers in his government with hundreds of political appointees at the Presidency and others attached to ministers and state organisations. "While the President has cut down this number, there is still room for a further reduction including merging some Ministries to reduce expenditure and cut down the number of Ministers to below 65. It is also necessary to trim the large number of political appointees who have sought refuge in the Flagstaff House. This will reflect the necessities of the time and the need for modesty and prudence" John Dramani Mahama noted. Find his full speech below: