The Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), Jean Adukwei Mensa, has said the commission in the 2020 general election cut the cost per voter, from 13 dollars per head in 2016 to 7 dollars per head and saved the government a formidable sum of $90 million.
She revealed that the comparative cost of the election was reduced by 41% which is equivalent to 90 million dollars and a voter turn-around time of between 10 and 12 minutes makes the election exemplary within the West African sub-region.
Speaking at a major forum at the opening ceremony of the 2021 ECOWAS Parliamentary Seminar in Winneba, Madam Jean Mensa said despite inflation and price hikes and the fact that they incurred additional costs owing to the COVID-19 protocols deployed throughout the election, the cost was reduced.
She added that the success story of Ghana can certainly be the story of the rest of the West African sub-region.
“We (Electoral Commission) proved that elections in our sub-region can be cost-effective and that with strict financial and procurement protocols, elections in our sub-region can be largely self-financed. For the first time in our history, we executed the entire Electoral process without donor assistance. Indeed our elections of 2020 were solely financed by the government of Ghana” the EC Chairperson said.
Source: Mybrytfmonline.com/Kofi Atakora
