The government is set to institute a National Rental Assistance Scheme to provide low-interest loans to eligible Ghanaians.
Delivering the 2021 budget, the caretaker Minister for Finance, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu said the scheme will begin with seed money of GHS100 million.
“The scheme will crowd-in additional investment from the private sector to provide low-interest loans to eligible Ghanaians to enable them pay rent advance,” he added.
Ghana’s rent and housing regime in the country has been a source of concern for Ghanaians and observers.
They have called for the strict enforcement of the maximum six-month rent advance law.
Landlords are known to demand between one and three years rent advance payment from Ghanaians, which is in total contravention of the law.
The rental assistance scheme is one of four new initiatives and additional reforms across several sectors of the economy that was highlighted in the budget.
The other initiatives listed by the caretaker Finance Minister were the National Equipment Leasing Policy in which the government will formulate a national equipment leasing policy to cover medical equipment, vehicles, photocopiers, printers, and scanners among others as part of the measures to more efficiently manage Ghana’s capital expenditure budget.
There is also the Transport Sector Recapitalisation Project where the government will commence work towards the implementation of a long-term Lease-To-Own financing arrangement for commercial vehicle owners and operators who need to replace aged and unroadworthy commercial vehicles.
In addition, there is the Enhanced Student Loan Scheme which will provide students, with the exception of teacher and nurse trainees, an option to obtain a student loan without the requirement of a guarantor.
“The prospective student must have a National Identification Number from the Ghana Card,” the Minister noted.
These are to “enhance further the quality of life of Ghanaians, to support domestic entrepreneurs and businesses, and to deepen access to public services,” Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu added.
