Accra, Dec. 13, GNA - Parliament on Tuesday approved a loan agreement between the government and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) for an amount of 19 million US dollars for the financing of the Root and Tuber Improvement and Marketing Programme (RTIMP). The loan is to enhance incomes and food security in order improve the livelihood of the rural poor in Ghana as well as building a competitive and market-based root and tuber commodities chains that are easily accessible to the rural-poor

A report of the Finance Committee on the loan agreement said the RTIMP would significantly improve overall agricultural growth in Ghana, enabling the agricultural sector to achieve an average growth rate of six per cent annually. "The programme would be implemented in 60 districts across the ten regions and it is expected to be completed within eight year, beginning from January 2006 to 2013." The loan has no interest and is repayable in 30 years with a grace period of 10 years.

The House also approved a loan agreement between government and the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank Group for an amount of 45 million US dollars in support of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Project. The project would expand and enhance access to the domestic and global markets and facilitate linkages between MSME and large scale industries through the provision of technical assistance to eligible public and private sector entities for setting up of pilot common service centres. It would also provide Business Development Services (BDS) grants to qualify MSME and intermediary organisations for comprehensive management development and business linkage service.

The loan has one per cent interest per annum and is repayable in 40 years with a moratorium period of 10 years. Earlier, the House approved a loan agreement amounting to 20 million US dollars between the government and the IDA for the Multi-Sectoral HIV/AIDS Project (M-SHAP). The project is designed to help reduce new infection rate among the vulnerable groups and the general population and to mitigate the socio-economic and health impact of the epidemic on the public. The loan has a 30 years repayment period.