Ghana's parliament approves a $4.65 billion provisional budget, averting a shutdown as John Mahama prepares to take office amid economic and energy sector challenges.
Ghana's parliament has passed a provisional budget that allows the government to spend 68.1 billion Ghanaian cedis ($4.65 billion) through March, the chamber's speaker said, narrowly averting an unprecedented government shutdown.
Parliamentary Speaker Alban Bagbin said the parliament had approved the provisional budget in a sitting that stretched deep into Thursday night.
John Dramani Mahama is set to take office as the West African country's president next week after winning a Dec. 7 election, staging a political comeback after serving as Ghana's president from 2012 to 2016.
Outgoing President Nana Akufo-Addo was due to present his last state of the nation address later on Friday after eight years leading the gold- and oil-exporting nation.
A provisional budget is typically passed in November during election years to cover the gap until the president-elect takes office.
But the presentation of the provisional budget had dragged this time after an impasse over whether the outgoing New Patriotic Party (NPP) or the incoming National Democratic Congress (NDC) party has a majority of seats in the House.
Finance Minister Mohammed Amin Adam told the joint business and finance committees the late passage of the provisional budget would not affect government business.
"It averts a government shutdown and (the) likelihood of worsening Ghana's ongoing debt default saga," Seth Terkper, a former finance minister, told Reuters.
Almost a third of the approved amount is earmarked for payments to energy-sector service providers, according to the provisional budget.
Mahama, the president-elect, said last month that Ghana was going to face a critical situation in the energy sector, adding that preliminary estimates showed that arrears exceeded $2.5 billion at a time when the power supply was erratic.
Mahama, who contested the election as the main opposition leader, is returning to power amid an economic resurgence from Ghana’s worst crisis in a generation.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he does not think he will need China's help to end the war with Iran as he le...
A new trilateral energy partnership involving Uzbekneftegaz, Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR and BP has been announced during Uzbekistan...
The Spanish government has issued a defiant message to Silicon Valley, confirming it...
Türkiye has completed formal preparations to begin direct commercial activity w...
After Labour's devastating performance in the 8 May local elections, the party's internal architecture has...
The United Nations has adopted a resolution to recognise transatlantic slavery as the "gravest crime against humanity" despite resistance from Europe and the United States. Ghana proposed it at the United Nations on Wednesday calling for reparations.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has announced that Germany will provide Ghana with €65 million (approximately $69 million) in development assistance.
Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama has dismissed Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo with immediate effect, following the outcome of an investigation into alleged misconduct, the presidency announced on Monday.
Ghana is in mourning after a military helicopter crashed in the southern Ashanti region, killing two cabinet ministers and six others. The government called it a national tragedy and has launched an investigation into the cause.
Kuwait arrested four members of an IRGC-linked group as they tried to enter the country by sea, the Gulf state's KUNA news agency reported on Tuesday. Meanwhile, a senior IRGC officer said Iran had expanded its definition of the Strait of Hormuz to include a far wider area.
Biological samples from an Italian man were transferred to a specialist hospital for testing on Tuesday, after he was suspected of contracting hantavirus. Meanwhile, World Health Organization boss Tedros Ghebreyesus said there were “no sign” of a larger outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise.
Exclusive flight-tracking material obtained by AnewZ has raised new questions about French military aircraft movements linked to President Emmanuel Macron’s recent diplomacy with Armenia and the wider scope of France’s defence cooperation with Yerevan.
Just one week after a similar move by Australia, Greece announced that it will ban access to social media for children under the age of 15 from January 1, 2027, as governments around the world weigh tougher rules amid growing concerns over mental health, safety and screen addiction.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he does not think he will need China's help to end the war with Iran as he left for a high-stakes summit in Beijing on Tuesday, as hopes for a lasting peace deal dwindled and Tehran tightened its grip over the Strait of Hormuz.
Deep in the ancient forests of southern China, researchers have discovered a small, shy snake with an extraordinary survival trick: when threatened, it creates the illusion that it has two heads.
After Labour's devastating performance in the 8 May local elections, the party's internal architecture has cracked open with remarkable speed.
When Donald Trump boarded Air Force One for Beijing on Tuesday, he brought two cabinet members whose presence in China would have seemed unlikely a year ago, highlighting an unusual moment in U.S.–China relations.
Britain will introduce new legislation aimed at strengthening ties with the European Union as Prime Minister Keir Starmer seeks to rebuild economic relations with the bloc while facing growing political pressure at home.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s three-day summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing, beginning on Wednesday (13 May), comes as rivalry between the two superpowers reaches new heights, a China analyst has said.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment