SHARING COUNTRY'S BURDEN

Rising crude oil and food prices have put a strain on economies all over the world, particularly developing economies.
Interest rates and inflation which were tamed in most emerging economies are making a rebound, forcing the prices of goods and services beyond the means of majority of the people.
The situation is compelling most governments to review their budgets and introduce austerity measures in order to prevent their economies from taking a nosedive.
In some developing countries, the people have taken to the streets to demand that their governments cut down on expenditure, as well as reduce the prices of petroleum products and food items. Governments which are not able to stand the pressure or design new strategies to address the price hikes have adjusted the cost of oil and food items to meet the demands of the people.
The governments of Cote d'Ivoire and South Africa have reduced the salaries of their functionaries in order to save to pay for the rising cost of fuel and food items.
It appears the rising cost of crude oil and food items will be with us for some time, in view of the unpredictability of the oil market and the effects of climate change.
What that means, therefore, is that our leaders should find innovative ways to address the challenges arising out of the rising cost of living.
The DAILY GRAPHIC welcomes moves by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to reduce the budgets of all ministries to save money to finance the purchase of crude oil for the Volta River Authority. This is in addition to the cut in taxes on certain food items and petroleum products announced recently.
The policies of the government in trying to contain inflation and the rising cost of living mark a good beginning, but the initiatives should be expanded further to be all-encompassing in order to keep macro-economic stability on track.
Therefore, the managers of all state institutions should be encouraged to adopt austerity measures in order to cut down on waste in their organisations.
Areas that require urgent attention to reduce waste include expenditure on stationery, fuel and other recurrent expenditure.
The use of government vehicles after office hours and at weekends must also be reviewed. Some time ago, the registration numbers of all government vehicles were prefixed by the letters GV in order to stem abuse after office hours and officials who required the use of those vehicles beyond office hours were given special authorisation to do so.
Times are not normal. Every country, including even the advanced ones, are all feeling the pinch and urgent action is required to tame the looming threat to the economy and the future of mankind.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes that the success of any such enterprise requires commitment and sacrifices from the leadership of the country at all levels of human endeavour.
Since example is better than precept, it will be worthwhile for our national leaders to demonstrate that in our efforts to overcome the temporary challenges, they are ready to show the way.
Let us avoid any extravagant lifestyles at this time of austerity so that the savings that will be made can be channelled into strategic sectors to generate the needed revenue to lubricate the economy.
So far, Ghanaians have demonstrated their preparedness to bite the bullet for a better future. All that the people expect from their leaders is a certain amount of modesty in their lifestyles so that the masses can be assured of the fact that our leaders are equally prepared to share the country's burden.