Government Hands Music Industry Gh¢2m

The government Wednesday announced a two million Ghana cedis (GH¢2,000,000) package to boost the Ghanaian music industry. Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, Dr Kwabena Duffour, who announced the booster when he presented the government's 2012 financial statement to Parliament in Accra, observed that “Ghana has a vibrant creative arts industry that can be nurtured to create jobs and provide increased income to all stakeholders.” Dr Duffour said global trade in the creative industry which covers “creative sectors such as music, film, video and photography, visual, performing arts [and] publishing,” remained very robust during the financial and economic meltdown. Mr. Bice Osei Kuffour, president of the Musicians Union of Ghana told myjoyonline.com he “was extremely glad” that Ghanaian music has finally been captured in the national budget. He said the provision “is a step in the right direction,” but lamented that, “it is not enough to solve the woes of the music industry but it is a good place to start from.” Bice, also known as Obour, said his administration fought very hard to attract the support from government but expressed hope the government's gesture would not be a nine-day wonder. When asked which key areas the money will be invested into, Obour said, a technical committee drafted the initial proposal of areas that needed funding and presented to the government and that the committee will draw up an action plan for the utilization of the allocation.