The COVID-19 Technical Team from the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has said the reports of dramatic price hikes in the Country must be addressed as an immediate step to protecting the poor from an extremely regressive public policy outcome as cases of coronavirus increase in the Country.
The team said this may be accomplished by standardizing the prices of essential goods.
In a statement, the NDC Team said “Alternatively, a supply-side solution may be found in the strategic deployment of reserves maintained by the National Buffer Stocks Corporation (NBSC) to induce lower costs through price competition. The maintenance of such retail outlets may be delegated to local governments under the supervision of DISEC and REGSEC. The NBSC’s reserves may also be employed for a direct nutrition assistance program to the most vulnerable communities and households nationwide to guarantee their food security IV.”
It said “Safeguarding the Economy The outbreak of COVID-19 in Ghana presents the greatest risk to our economic stability that we have faced to date. The impact of the pandemic on the global economy was already wreaking havoc on our economic outlook well before the first cases were confirmed.”
The team said the Government must now formulate a plan to address the unprecedented risk the economy faces and to support the fight against the virus, to mitigate its impacts on trade and enterprise, and to preserve human health and dignity at this difficult time. A reasonable, sustainable funding plan is essential to accomplish these goals.
Source: Mybrytfmonline/Kofi Atakora
