Majority leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu has revealed that the current negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) may delay the presentation of Ghana’s Budget Statement and the Economic Policy for 2023.
Ghana’s Budget Statement and the Economic Policy for 2023 scheduled for November 15, 2022 are unlikely to be read.
The Public Financial Management Act mandates that the budget is presented next two weeks.
However, due to the government's ongoing talks with the IMF for a bailout continue, the deadline now appears unlikely, the Majority Leader said.
“But if you want to do tidy work, you may be required to have some space to be able to do a tidy job. Because as you all know, these are not normal times,” he said on Thursday.
He further explained the circumstances surrounding the deal may place too much pressure on the process if the House is to go ahead with the stipulated date.
According to him, the IMF team wants to have the best to be able to uplift us from where we are as a country.
"And that being the case, if we want to do a thorough job, I think there will be too much pressure if it has to be done on the 15th of November,” he added.
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President Akufo-Addo admitted on Sunday night that the budget has 2022 budget had already been thrown out of gear.
The President said he is aware of the rise in the cost of living in the nation and the economic challenges affecting Ghanaians while addressing the nation on the condition of the economy.
He claims that the country's 2022 budget is now obsolete due to the country's economic problems.
“For us, in Ghana, our reality is that our economy is in great difficulty. The budget drawn for the 2022 fiscal year has been thrown out of gear, disrupting our balance of payments and debt sustainability, and further exposing the structural weaknesses of our economy."