Salary cut for ministers, SOEs should go beyond December 2022 - Franklin Cudjoe

Cabinet ministers, heads of SOEs to cut salaries by 30% till December 2022

Government adopts expenditure-cutting measures that will ensure achievement of fiscal deficit target

Government should have reviewed most of the flagship projects, Franklin Cudjoe

Policy think tank IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe, has called on government to extend the salary cut of government workers including ministers and heads of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) beyond December 2022 to 2024.

Commending government on steps taken to help the economy including a cut on the salaries of government workers, he suggested that government should also have reviewed most of the flagship projects.

“It was a good move by the government to cut the salaries of those in government as it has now set a considerable example. I am not discounting the importance of the salary cuts [of the people] in government and I agree with it. I would have actually proposed for the cuts to go beyond December right to 2024,” Asaaseradio quoted

“The challenge I have is that a lot of the [wages and salaries] cut should have gone beyond personnel and departmental level rationalization to a review of most of the [government’s] flagship projects.” Franklin Cudjoe added

Frankling Cudjo’s comment comes after Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, announced that the government has approved a 30% salary reduction for all Cabinet Ministers and heads of State-Owned Enterprises, effective April 2022 till the year ends.

According to Mr. Ofori-Atta, revenue generated from these contributions would be deposited into the Consolidated Fund.

In a televised national address on Thursday, March 24, he explained that this decision forms part of expenditure cutting measures that will ensure the achievement of the fiscal deficit target of 7.4 percent of GDP for 2022.