2020 budget: We have now included Volta Region roads, it was an omission - Finance Minister

Ken Ofori-Atta, the Minister for Finance says they have amended the 2020 Budget statement to include roads in the Volta Region.

The Minister on Wednesday presented the 2020 budget in Parliament but the road projects in the Volta Region was missing from the list of roads to be constructed in 2020.

This raised a few eyebrows but the government has come out to say it was only an omission and they are bent on constructing roads in the Volta Region.

READ ALSO: 2020 budget : Leaving out Volta Region in road allocations was a mistake - Senior Minister

According to the Finance Minister, his attention was drawn to the omission by the Volta Regional Minister and Energy Minister, John Peter Amewu.

“On Wednesday, 13th November 2019, I presented the 2020 Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the government of Ghana on behalf of the President of the Republic of Ghana. Following my presentation to this August house, the honourable Volta Regional Minister and the honourable Minister for Energy drew my attention to an omission of the Volta Region from the list of critical roads listed in Table 21 of the budget statement. My checks confirm, Mr. Speaker, the inadvertent omission of Volta Region.

“All the Regional Ministers, Mr. Speaker, were requested to submit a list of critical roads which required immediate attention. At the instance of the Volta Regional Minister, three roads projects in the Volta Region were prioritised in the list of critical road projects for 2020. As it turned out on page 160 of the budget document, the Volta Region was inadvertently left out. In the event, I am yet to amend table 21 to include the critical roads in the Volta Region as originally agreed on.”

Mr. Ofori Atta, however, failed to apologize for the omission.

Senior Minister Yaw Osafo Maafo on the Citi Breakfast Show on Thursday said there was a mistake in the document.

“It was obviously a mistake,” the Minister explained noting that he was also taken aback by the omission.

READ ALSO: Minority brands 2020 budget as uninspiring, calls it an 'exit budget'

“When I also saw it, I asked myself, how could it be because there were 15 regions instead of 16 and I asked him [the sector minister] and he said we have a whole list for the Volta Region,” he said.