Parliament Approves 2017 budget for Foreign Ministry arliament Approves 2017 budget for Foreign Ministry

The 2017 budget estimates of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration amounting to about GHȼ399 million has been approved by Parliament.

The amount is to enable the Ministry run its affairs and implement its policies for the 2017 financial year.

A report, signed by the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Patrick Boamah and presented to the House yesterday, recommended to the legislature to adopt its report and approve the sum of three hundred and ninety-eight million, six hundred and seventy-six thousand, six hundred and thirty-two Ghana cedis (GHc 398,676,632) for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration.

According to the report, the committee carefully scrutinized the estimates of the Ministry and observed that it had projected to collect the sum of GHc 149,831,338.93 as Internally Generated Funds (IGF) from its mission operations abroad.

It said the amount would be realized from visa issuance, GHc 85,149,981.12, issuance of passports for Ghanaians would also generate an amount of GHc 31,639,733.66.

Again, authentication services and refunds would generate GHc 31,775,361.89 and GHc 1,216,262.26 respectively, totaling the GHc 149,831,338.93.

“The committee noted that the 2017 budget statement allows the Ministry to retain only GHc 51,570,645 of the total IGF projection for the year 2017. This was in sharp contrast of the 100% given to the Ministry over the years.

“The representative of the Ministry of Finance at the meeting explained to the committee that, as part of a new IGF retention policy of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was not permitted to retain 100% of its IGF for 2017.”

The Ministry got to know about this “shocking” development at the meeting and informed the committee that the reduction will have significant adverse impact on the smooth operations of Ghana's missions abroad.

The committee was further informed that missions that generate IGF are allowed to retain 35% and the remaining 65% is paid into a hold account for the upkeep of other less endowed missions.

The report indicated that the idea was to create a pool of fund from which other embassies and missions that incur cost but generate fewer resources could be funded.

It further noted that, the committee observed with worry, the inadequate allocations made to the Ministry and its negative consequences on the ability of the Ministry and our Mission to attract the much needed foreign investments into the country.

The committee however, recommended to the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta and Government to properly resource the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration to enable it play its pivotal role of modern economic diplomacy.

Meanwhile, out of the amount allocated and approved, GHc 42,417,313 and GHc 51,570,645 is to be retained from their IGF for goods and services as well as assets expenditure respectively, while the remaining GHc 304,688,674 is allocated from the government sources from the 2017 financial year.

Ostensibly, the allocation is expected is to disbursed among the various cost centers, where compensation for employees will amount to GHc 266,729,380, with goods and services being GHc 32,959,294.

Capital expenditure and IGF will be GHc 5,000,000 and GHc 93,987,958 respectively, which sums up to the GHc 398,676,632.

The allocation to the Ministry recorded an increase of 0.13% (GHc 398,676,632) which represents 0.73% of the total national budget compared to 0.60% (GHc 300,893,182.00) of the national budget allocated to the Ministry in 2016.

By Maxwell Ofori, Parliament House Accra
[email protected]