The House on Tuesday considered and approved the budget hearing reports from the various committees for the Ministry of Roads and Highways, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Works, Housing and Water Resources, and the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection.

The Health Ministry received the highest allocation of the day with GH¢22.8 billion, with employee compensation alone accounting for GH¢16.24 billion.

The Ministry of Roads and Highways was approved for GH¢5.37 billion, the Gender Ministry GH¢3.26 billion, the Transport Ministry GH¢1.5 billion, and the Housing Ministry GH¢1.46 billion.

According to the committee report, the Health Ministry plans to spend “GH¢16,247,852,164 on Compensation of Employees, GH¢4,513,970,582 on Goods and Services, and GH¢2,043,078,310 on Capital Expenditure (Capex).”

The Roads Ministry will spend GH¢142,687,104 on Compensation of Employees, GH¢59,191,005 on Goods and Services, and GH¢5,176,580,250 on Capital Expenditure.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Finance may or may not release the entire approved funds, depending on the government’s revenue position in the 2026 fiscal year.

Other committees are expected to present their reports for approval in the coming days.

This decision is part of his broader strategy to create a leaner and more effective government structure.

Several ministries have been either scrapped or merged as part of this reorganization. The Ministry of Information has been dissolved, with its functions now integrated into the Ministry of Communication.

The Ministry of Water and Sanitation has also been scrapped, with water-related responsibilities added to the Ministry of Works and Housing, while sanitation duties have been transferred to the Ministry of Local Government.

Both the Ministry of Railways and the Ministry of National Security have been dissolved.

To better address youth needs, the Ministry of Sports and Youth has been divided into two distinct entities: the Ministry of Youth Development and Empowerment, and the Ministry of Sports and Recreation.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Chieftaincy has been dissolved, with its responsibilities now transferred to the Ministry of Local Government.

ALSO READ:

‘Mahama may have forgotten’ – NDC executive pushes for removal of…

Woman stabbed to death by her boyfriend for wearing bum shorts…

NPA implements measures to resolve petrol shortages in northern Ghana

The two, according to him, are the Fisheries and Sanitation ministries.

Dr Sarpong, speaking on Adom TV’s The Big Agenda show, said these ministries were created from a mother Ministry, hence must be re-attached to help save money.

“The Fisheries Ministry can be added back to the Agric Ministry as well as Sanitation Ministry being added to Local government Ministry so the money used to run these ministries can be used on something else,” Dr Sarpong stated.

President Nana Akufo-Addo in January 2021 collapsed seven of the ministries he created in 2017 when he took over from John Mahama.

During the President’s first term, his office was made up of 123 appointees, with about 36 substantive ministers, seven ministers of state, 48 deputy ministers, 16 regional ministers and 16 deputy regional ministers.

But Dr Sarpong thinks scrapping the above-mentioned Ministries will also help government make some additional money and invest it in other areas.

His proposal comes at a time government is adopting measures to mitigate the impact of the global economic difficulties in Ghana.