The
United Kingdom has given Ghana £4 million as part of efforts to
entrench democracy particularly the running of elections in the West
African country. The support comes on the back of several others
including a £6-million support in 2012 for that year’s elections.
Speaking
at a short ceremony to announce the support, UK’s Minister of State for
International Development Desmond Swayne said the priority of the
support is to strengthen state institutions.
“Our main effort is
going to be firstly strengthening the state institution,” he said on
Wednesday, April 6, “the Electoral Commission, the police and the
judiciary.”
Mr Swayne argued that it will not be out of place “to
build up a contingency fund, a rapid reaction facility so that we can
deal with problems as they arise and problems as they arise”.
The
UK invested a total of £300 million between 2011 and 2016 and has been
particularly pivotal in supporting the past six elections in Ghana.
The latest support is expected to span five years and Mr Swayne predicts that may be the last from the Kingdom.
“Because
of the fact that you are becoming a middle income country, I anticipate
that this will be the last such investment that we will make in
democratic structures of this sort.”
Present at the ceremony were
the Chair of the Electoral Commission, Charlotte Osei, Inspector
General of Police John Kudalor, UK High Commissioner jon Benjamin and
Ghana's High Commissioner to the UK and Ireland, Victor Smith.
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