President John Mahama has justified the decision to exclude the Ministry of Information from the lineup of 23 ministries in his administration, describing it as a strategic move to fulfil his promise to downsize the government while ensuring efficient communication.

This comes after the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) raised concerns regarding the recent changes in government structure to understand the rationale behind the removal of the Ministry of Information from the President’s list of ministries.

Speaking at a press engagement, President Mahama explained that the absence of the Information Ministry reflects a conscious effort to streamline government operations and reduce redundancies.

Read also: GJA seeks clarity on the removal of the Ministry of Information

“With regards to government communications, you’ll notice that there’s no Information Ministry in the lineup of 23 ministries we recently announced. That was partly in response to our promise to downsize government,” the President stated.

To address the critical need for timely and accurate dissemination of information, President Mahama revealed the establishment of a Minister of State in charge of government communications, directly under the presidency.

“We had to be very strategic with how we dealt with the flow of information from government because that’s critical to the success of whatever we intend to do. That’s why we brought information into the presidency, with a Minister of State in charge of government communications, and anchored it with a string of strong communications professionals in the most critical sectors,” Mr Mahama explained.

Additionally, the President outlined plans to modernise the Information Services Department (ISD), transitioning it from its traditional role as a civil service organization into a dynamic entity under the presidency.

The goal, he said, is to enhance the department’s capacity to provide consistent, accurate, and timely updates on government activities to the public.