Minister for Planning, Prof. Baffour Gyan, has said Ghana must move from the regime where government spends more than the private sector.

He explains that if the private sector is empowered to spend more, government expenditure will reduce.

 “I think we need to look at the solutions to this. People think that if the government doesn’t spend more, then the people become poor,” he said Thursday on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show.

According to him, it is a misconception that the economy is doing well if the government is spending more.

He stated that the private sector is another major source of revenue for the country should it be empowered.

“That is what we are trying to do by looking at the structure of the economy,” he said.

The Minister said that the government has empowered the private sector by the implementation of the One-District One-Factory (1D1F) policy, which he believes will go a long way to make a difference in the life of the average Ghanaian.

“I think we should rather look at the structure of the economy to ensure that government doesn’t have to be the one that is to spend more”, he added.

The private sector is part of the economy that is run by individuals and companies in a country. It operates for profit and is not state-controlled. In Ghana, the private sector remains an important source of investment in the economy, generating income from both local and foreign investors. The sector in 2016 contributed 17 per cent of the country’s GDP.

Speaking on the Super Morning Show with Daniel Dadzie, Prof. Gyan stated that the private sector could be the one that generates money for citizens instead of the government.

“Once we do that the issue of the government budget and all that probably may not have any effect on the people’s lives,” he said.

He also stated that as long as a suitable environment is created for the growth of the private sector, citizen lives will be in good shape.