Halt extreme poverty!!

The Ghanaian Times has taken the position that when accredited experts, individuals or institutions, talk, it will stand by it and base its opinions on the evidence provided until otherwise proven wrong or outdated.

In that vein, the paper finds it worrying that the World Bank is saying the burden of inflation and low economic growth are impacting negatively on the vulnerable in the country and pushing more citizens into poverty.

The mention of poverty usually paints the picture of the state of people not having money or lacking the usual or socially-acceptable amount of money or material possessions.

To some people, not having material possessions is not a big deal but lacking the means to satisfy basic needs is.

In a country like Ghana, where the family system is breaking down with its dependence network, a family member, can, for instance, be helped with a place to live most of the time but cannot be provided his basic needs like food and clothing all the time.

This is especially when the person is an adult.

Therefore, to hear that the current economic situation is pushing more Ghanaians into poverty should be scary because the repercussions are many and dire.

It is not palatable at all to hear the World Bank estimate that about 36 per cent of Ghanaians are poor and that more than a quarter of the people live on less than $2.15 per day.

If the current exchange rate of GH¢16.30 to a dollar  and the country’s current population of 34.78 million are things to go by, then what the World Bank is saying is that about 9 million Ghanaians are each living on less than GH¢34.50 (or GH¢35) a day.

It must be noted that even if this amount can be an average figure, it means not all the people in the affected bracket can have that money a day.

The truth is that if the GH¢35 is the norm, then a family of four would have GHC140 at their disposal a day, which would have translated into GH¢4200 family income a month.

However, it is a well-known fact most bread winners in the country earn far less than this amount.

No wonder some people say Ghanaians are magicians when it comes to managing to survive.

It is difficult to make a living in Ghana with the levels of incomes provided by employers in the country, with the government being the first to accuse.

If the government has been offering a minimum wage of GH¢18.15 a day since January 1, this year (2024), then the World Bank figure is hard to work with.

In other words, the World Bank is being magnanimous in its submission.

Let’s face it; with the cost of living in the country skyrocketing by day, the government had better effect the suggestion by the World Bank to the effect that it should implement policies to ensure that severe poverty conditions are addressed.(See our story on page 11 of  Friday, November 1, 2024, issue).

The issue of poverty in the country, in fact, extreme among the vulnerable, and all the hindrances it puts on the way of the people, especially the youth, and stifles their progress should significantly engage the conscience of politicians who manage the affairs of the state.

This should prick them to look for the solution rather than priding themselves on shallow achievements that benefit only them, their cronies and a few privileged people.