Ghana’s government to begin collecting poverty data

Ghana’s National Household Registry (GNHR) will begin the collection of data on poverty in the Central Region today.

The Registry will aim to provide social welfare resources to those living in rural and low-income areas. This project is part of efforts to maintain the current progress that has been made in poverty reduction across the country. 

Ghana’s Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection received a grant from the World Bank to establish the GNHR in 2015. So far, the GNHR has data on the North East Region, and the Greater Accra Region as well as others. The primarily rural Central Region has remained relatively underreported in terms of poverty data. 

This program will be crucial to alleviating economic concerns in the near future as Ghana’s precarious economic situation has contributed to clashes with the police. Tensions regarding Ghana’s record levels of inflation, the E-levy tax, and high fuel prices have pushed groups like Arise Ghana to protest high living costs. This new program, along with other social projects implemented by Ghana’s will more accurately target families in need and provide moderate economic relief. Protests in vulnerable areas may continue as the government struggles to rein in inflation numbers, with major roadblocks like a limited budget.