The projected 2021 budget is seen to increase the budget for the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development by 163.6%. This was revealed at the press conference on the 2021 budget assessment by Send Ghana at Accra.
Evaluating the budget to the press, Send Ghana noted that the increment is in line with calls for increased funding for the development of the sector. However, the analysis over the years shows that execution rates have been low, owing to non-releases of substantial amounts of approved budgets for spending.
The instances are that, in 2018, the total approved budget for capital expenditure (CAPEX) for the Ministry was GHS 39,142 million, but only 15.8 percent (GHS 6, 208 million) was released.
Similarly, in 2019, the ministry spent less than half (45.7 percent) of its approved budget of GH¢59,592,448. This was because, not a pesewa out of the approved budget expected to be funded by Development Partners (DPs) for capital expenditure (CAPEX), (GH¢24,050,000) was released. Meanwhile, in 2021, DPs are expected to contribute about 84. 8 percent to fund CAPEX.
This is a worrying trend that could potentially hinder progress in undertaking important infrastructural development in the sector
