The Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Dr. Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, has provided an assurance that the government is meeting its financial commitments to the nation’s most vulnerable, confirming that timely disbursements under the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) Programme have been made throughout the year.
The Minister also revealed that the Ministry is preparing to launch a critical, long-overdue re-assessment of the programme as it works toward enrolling an additional 50,000 extreme poor households.
Speaking in an interview, Dr. Lartey stated unequivocally that the government has not defaulted on its commitment to beneficiaries. She confirmed that payments covering the period from January to October 2025 have been fully and timely disbursed, with only the final two monthly payments for November and December remaining for the year.
“As we speak, we have not defaulted. From January to October, we have done the disbursement on time and we are left with November and December to do the final disbursement for the year”
Dr. Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection
The Minister provided detailed figures on the extensive reach of the LEAP Programme, which acts as a vital safety net for Ghana’s most financially disadvantaged citizens.
She confirmed that the programme currently supports approximately 350,000 extreme poor households, a figure that translates into around 1.5 million individuals who receive direct financial aid to mitigate poverty.
Dr. Lartey elaborated on the funding mechanism, explaining that the support is structured as a monthly cash grant. This grant relies on timely financial releases from the Ministry of Finance to the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, which is then channeled through to the individual beneficiaries experiencing extreme poverty.
The current operational scale is set to expand significantly, aligning with the government’s stated mandate. The Minister confirmed that the target, as set by His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, is to reach 400,000 households. To achieve this expansion, the Ministry must enroll roughly 50,000 additional beneficiaries into the programme.
Strategic Re-assessment
To facilitate this targeted expansion and ensure the efficiency and integrity of the programme, the Ministry is preparing to undertake a comprehensive re-assessment of the LEAP Programme.
This vital evaluation, the Minister noted, has not been executed since the programme’s inception in 2008, underscoring the urgent necessity of the upcoming review.
Dr. Lartey expressed strong optimism that this re-assessment will serve a dual purpose: first, it will allow the Ministry to “graduate” some existing beneficiaries who have successfully utilized the grants to lift themselves out of poverty and achieve some level of economic stability.
Second, the graduation of these individuals will create the necessary financial space to enroll the next cohort of citizens who are currently experiencing the severest forms of poverty, allowing the programme to meet its expanded national target of 400,000 households.
“We are hoping this year, with the re-assessment, we will be able to leap some few people out of poverty,” the Minister stressed, highlighting the programme’s dual mandate of support and empowerment.
The strategic push to enroll an additional 50,000 households is central to the government’s broader social protection agenda, ensuring that the LEAP Programme continues to fulfill its mandate as a dynamic tool for poverty alleviation and social equity.
The Minister concluded that the timely delivery of funds in 2025 demonstrates the government’s concrete commitment to protecting vulnerable populations.
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