The Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme will by the end of this year increase cash grant to beneficiaries by 100 per cent to support efforts in order to reduce poverty in the country, the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection has disclosed.
Currently, beneficiaries in a household of one are paid GH¢128, while a household of two, three and four receive GH¢152, GH¢176 and GH¢212 respectively.
To this end, the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection in a statement issued in Accra yesterday said it was working in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance to conclude the necessary steps to realise the increment in the current grant size.
The head of the LEAP Management Secretariat, Dr Myles Ongoh, who disclosed these in an exclusive interview with the Ghanaian Times in Accra yesterday said in line with this, the LEAP Management Secretariat was awaiting approval to “recalibrate” the grant size of beneficiaries to reflect the new rates ahead of the “89th cycle payment” which is expected to begin this week.
Dr Ongoh, who was speaking to this reporter on the backdrop of achievement of the LEAP, said presently 350,580 households across 260 districts in the country were benefitting from the LEAP.
He said the secretariat had undertaken comprehensive reassessment efforts including a pilot project in 10 districts of the five regions of the north, utilising the Ghana National Household Registry (GNHR) data.
“As a result, households are being reassessed for eligibility, with some removed, others graduating, and new enrollments initiated.
A community-level field operation further verifies beneficiary statuses, ensuring timely adjustments to the programme’s roster,” he added.
Highlighting other successes, the statement said LEAP had registered about 80 per cent of beneficiaries on to the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and trained Regional and District Officers to build capacity on LEAP finance policies, procedures and case management processes.
Also, LEAP conducted quarterly community level field visit to assess progress made on programme implementation.
To ensure its efficiency and accountability, Dr Ongoh added that LEAP had enhanced its monitoring efforts, identifying households that had not accessed grants for consecutive payment cycles.
LEAP was rolled out in 2008 to provide vital support to Ghana’s most vulnerable households through bi-monthly cash grants and strategic interventions to alleviate extreme poverty and foster human capital development among disadvantaged communities.
BY NORMAN COOPER
