Ghana government allocates GH¢38m cash for 150,000 poor households

The Ghana government is set to allocate GH¢38 million to expand the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme in 2014.

This was announced by the Finance Minister Seth Terkper in Parliament yesterday November 19, 2013 when reading the 2014 Budget Statement.

The expansion will cover 150,000 households, Terkper told legislators.

According to the Minister, the amount will also “improve the targeting of LEAP using more efficient data collection, as well as expansion in the coverage of the programme”.

This is to ensure that the impacts already achieved are not only deepened but also have a lasting effect on lives of a greater number of beneficiaries, their families and wider communities.

The LEAP programme provides cash and health insurance to extremely poor households across Ghana to alleviate short-term poverty and encourage long term human capital development.

The programme started a trial phase in March 2008 and then began expanding gradually in 2009 and 2010. As of July 2013, the programme had reached over 70,000 households across Ghana with an annual expenditure of approximately $20 million.

The programme is funded by the Government of Ghana, the UK DFID and the World Bank.

The programme is implemented by the Department of Social Welfare (DSW) in the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP).

By Ekow Quandzie