The Civil Society Organizations on the Sustainable Goal 1 Platform have suggested that by extension Ghana is not poor but resource mismanagement and the missing consciousness and measurable outputs of government’s anti-poverty programmes have deepened the poverty situation.
A statement issued by the Platform indicated that anti-poverty programs must have measurable outcomes to measure success.
It said investments into poverty-driven policies should have measurable outcomes.
More than 700 million people, or 10 per cent of the world population, still live in extreme poverty today, struggling to fulfil the most basic needs like health, education, and access to water and sanitation, to name a few.
The majority of people living on less than $1.90 a day live in sub-Saharan Africa. Worldwide, the poverty rate in rural areas is 17.2 per cent—more than three times higher than in urban areas.
The Platform wants the government to invest in technical and vocational education to ensure that the youth especially are able to create their own jobs.
”We entreat the government to make deliberate efforts and invest in TVET. With skills acquired one could create his/her own job. We believe that creating more jobs via business is the surest way to reducing poverty. However, this cannot be done in a hostile business environment. Conditions for businesses are not favourable, which include higher taxes and levies and that businesses easily collapse and disincentivize others to start one. Government should see business red tape reforms as mechanisms to reduce poverty.”
The statement was issued in commemoration of the World Poverty Day.
Read the full statement below
Press Statement
UN’s SDG 1 Platform of Ghana
World Poverty Day Celebrations, 2021
As we celebrate the world poverty day across the globe under the theme: “Building Forward Together: Ending Persistent Poverty, Respecting all People and our Planet”, we are reminded of our efforts to end poverty by 2030. Globally, it’s a great milestone to have steadily reduced extreme poverty from almost 25 years. The Multi-dimensional Poverty Index also revealed that Ghana has made a little more progress in reducing multidimensional
poverty by 9 per cent, from 55 per cent to 46 per cent, between the periods of 2011 and 2017.
Now for the first time in our generation however, the quest to end poverty globally has suffered its worst setback.
According to the World Bank, Global extreme poverty is expected to rise in 2020 for the first time in over 20 years as the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic compounds the forces of conflict and climate change, which were already slowing poverty reduction progress.
Again, other researchers estimate that climate change alone will drive between 68 million – 132 million into poverty by 2030. This is Also the same year we are ending poverty of all forms.
The over 60 CSOs of the SDG 1 platform here by acknowledge the efforts of the government of Ghana to reducing poverty of any kind. Ghana’s multi-dimensional poverty however, revealed a lot of our poverty situation.
As a platform we collectively agree that by extension Ghana is not poor but resource mismanagement and the missing consciousness and measurable outputs of government’s anti -poverty programmes have deepened the poverty situation.
We entreat the government to make deliberate efforts and invest in TVET. With skills acquired one could create his/her own job. We believe that creating more jobs via business is the surest way to reducing poverty. However, this cannot be done in a hostile business environment. Conditions for businesses are not favourable, which include higher taxes and levies and that businesses easily collapse and disincentivize others to start one. Government should see business red tape reforms as mechanisms to reduce poverty.
Government anti-poverty programs must have measurable outcomes to measure success. Investments into poverty driven policies should have measurable outcomes.
Government must also prioritize programs to reduce child poverty at both urban and rural societies. Governments should rapidly scale up social and economic safety net program and services to the most vulnerable to meet their immediate basic needs and not deprived.
Children under 15 years are more prone to multi-dimensional poverty at a of total of 19.3 per cent (6 million Ghanaians) being both monetarily and multi-dimensionally. According to UNICEF, three-in-four children 3/4 (73.4%) in Ghana are identified as multi-dimensionally poor, facing at least three deprivations at the same time. Very few children suffer – no deprivation (2.5 per cent) or one deprivation (8.3 per cent).
Though the onus rests on government to reduce and end poverty of all kinds, the individuals and private sector must actively participate in the process. It’s imperative to engage the private sector and CSOs to deduce a clear path that involves everyone to help manage and reduce poverty. Such collaborations are important to realign plans and policies to end poverty in 2030.
We have approximately 9 years more to end poverty in Ghana and we must all work together to achieve this goal.
Conveners
Maxwel Amedi – 024 402 6547
Kekesi – 20 887 8933
Peter Bismark – 0244169361
All CSO members of the SDG 1 Platform
Cc:
All media outlets
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
