Ghanaians expect 2012 budget to focus on job creation

TEMA, Ghana, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Just two days ahead of the presentation of the 2012 budget to the parliament by Ghana's Minister of Finance and Economic Planning Kwabena Duffour, many residents here expressed their hope that the budget would focus on job creation.

Talking with Xinhua on Monday at the port city of Tema, 38 kilometers east of Accra, local residents were quite optimistic that the government was going to focus more on pragmatic measures that would address many problems, particularly the unemployment faced by young job seekers.

Duffour is set to present the new budget to the parliament on Wednesday, the third budget to be presented to the legislature by the government led by the National Democratic Congress since it came to power early 2009.

Sammy Addade, a businessman in Sakumono, a suburb of Tema, told Xinhua that he expected the government to create a congenial atmosphere that would enable private businesses to operate and make profits to create employment in the country.

He complained that interest rates were high, seriously affecting his activities, and urged the government to do something to reduce the interest rates.

Anthony Agyekum, an unemployed resident in Tema, expressed his hope that the 2012 budget statement would come out clearly with very concrete measures as to how to create jobs to reduce the unemployment rate in the country.

"I would want the government to tell us, we, the jobless, how they are going to create jobs for us to do. The lip service has just been too much for my liking. It was time our leaders did something better for us this time," he said.