SONA not enough platform to give details; seek clarification from sector ministers – Economist

An Economist, Dr. Prince Adjei, has said that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo could not have used the State of the Nation Address to address every issue going on in the country.

He has urged the public to seek answers and clarifications on issues from the sector ministers.

“The state of the nation might not be the appropriate forum to give the details of what the government said but rather seek clarity from the sector ministers,” Dr. Adjei said on the Sunrise show on 3fm with Alfred Ocansey on Thursday, March 31.

He added, “If the citizens see the government as not credible due to the lack of transparency they will then question everything that will be introduced.”

The Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu also said that the SONA delivered did not reflect the true conditions of Ghanaians.

Seconding the motion for the adjournment of the sitting after the President had delivered his address, Mr. Iddirsu said “we expected him to deliver the true state of the nation that reflects the hardship of the people. Regrettably, he himself does not have the confidence to talk about the economy.”

President Akufo-Addo in his address said among other things that through the One District One Factory Initiative (1D1F) initiative, the made-in-Ghana label is being stamped on a wide range of products proudly manufactured in Ghana.

He said out of a total of two hundred and seventy-eight (278) 1D1F projects at various stages of implementation in all the sixteen (16) regions, one hundred and six (106) factories are currently operational, one hundred and forty-eight (148) are under construction, while twenty-four (24) projects are at mobilisation stage.

He said “Mr. Speaker, in order to bring the youth on board the 1D1F Programme, fifty-eight (58) out of the two hundred and seventy-eight (278) 1D1F Projects have been developed as enterprises fully owned by youth groups, with direct Government support. Each of these 1D1F Youth companies is owned by between forty (40) and fifty (50) youth as shareholders.

“In addition, five (5) medium-scale state-of-the-art agro-processing Common-User Facilities (CUFs) have been established with direct support from Government and are owned by various groups of farmers, whose farming operations had previously been undermined through lack of processing facilities. These farmer-owned companies have been established in five (5) Districts, namely Dormaa West, Savelugu, Sefwi Akontonbra, Sekyere Central, and Tarkwa Nsuaem. They cover oil palm processing, rice milling, and the processing of maize into maize grits."