The Speaker of Parliament, Mr Alban Kingsford Sumana Bagbin, has underscored the need for the government to initiate home-grown policies in the country to address the country’s recurring economic challenges. He said issues of debt, inflation and unemployment, could not be addressed without home-grown strategies.
Mr Bagbin stated this at the opening of a three-day post budget workshop held in Accra on Saturday, and urged legislators to utilise the national budget and economic policy of the government as a strategic tool to promote the country’s economic independence. The workshop, which was organised by the Parliamentary Training Institute (PTI) and the Parliamentary Service, was also to equip legislators with the needed skills to scrutinise the budget and economic policies of the government.
He said that the policies contained in the budget statement and economic policy of the government must ensure that the country became self-reliant and a resilient domestically driven economy. Mr Bagbin said that the stringent fiscal consolidation, structural reforms, and the external debt management associated with the financial support that was provided by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has had mixed reception and mixed outcomes across Africa.
“The 24-hour economy policy cannot thrive on infrastructure alone. It must be anchored on a renewed and revised legal framework and governance structure,” Mr Bagbin indicated. “The true power of Parliament lies not in its ability to rubber stamp or abstract, in its capacity to deliberate with integrity that oversees with precision. In this Parliament, we must embody the highest standards of professional conduct, impartial analysis, and civic courage,” he said.
Mr Bagbin further noted that the research service was being restructured into a centre of excellence by the parliamentary service to provide high-level policy relevant analysis. Additionally, he said that the Parliamentary Service was strengthening functional linkages between sector committees and national expert groups to help drive economic growth.
Mr Bagbin expressed gratitude to the organisers of the workshop and also urged legislators to actively participate in it and ask relevant questions. The Deputy Minister of Finance, Mr Thomas Nyarko Ampem, on behalf of Dr Forson, said that the 2026 budget builds on the stability of the 2025 budget to create jobs, improve infrastructure and enhance public services.
“We count on you honourable members to continue to place the interest of public finance and economic transformation high in your consideration of the budget,” Mr Ampem noted. Both the Deputy Majority Leader, Mr George Kwaku Ricketts-Hagan, and the Deputy Minority Leader, Mrs Patricia Appiagyei, pledged their commitment to work together to ensure that the budget enhanced economic growth.
The Clerk to Parliament, Mr Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, in his welcome address, said the workshop had over the years evolved to an indispensable pillar in Parliament’s consideration of the national budget.
BY BENJAMIN ARCTON-TETTEY
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