Member of Parliament for Akim Swedru, Kennedy Osei Nyarko, has questioned the government’s spending on the free sanitary pad programme, arguing that the money could instead be invested in projects capable of generating economic returns for the country.
In a post on his Facebook page, the legislator compared the government’s expenditure on free sanitary pads with the previous administration’s proposed investment in the National Cathedral.
According to Nyarko, the government is expected to spend almost GH¢600 million between 2025 and 2026 on providing free sanitary pads, an expenditure he said would not generate direct economic returns for the state.
He further claimed that the expenditure could reach approximately GH¢1.2 billion by the end of 2028, which he equated to about US$110 million.
“You are happy that between 2025 & 2026 the Government is spending almost 600 million which is equivalent to $55 million to provide free sanitary pads which does not bring any economic returns to the country but you are angry because the previous administration wanted to spend about $300 million to construct a National Cathedral with a huge economic returns,” Nyarko wrote.
The MP argued that the National Cathedral, if completed, could have generated revenue and eventually paid for itself through activities and services associated with the facility.
He suggested that the opposition to the cathedral project may have been influenced more by the political identity of the administration that initiated it than by the project itself.
“At this point I’m convinced that it was not the cathedral itself the people were against it but rather the personality and the Government that wanted to build it,” he said.
He maintained that while social interventions may serve important social purposes, government spending should also prioritise projects capable of generating revenue, supporting economic activity or eventually paying for themselves.
“If we are talking about prudent and wise spending then we should be spending on projects that will pay for itself in the long run or brings in an economic benefits to the country,” he stated.
