Gov’t Warns Ministers Against Announcing Policies Without Cabinet Approval
The Ghanaian government has issued a strong directive to all Ministers of State, warning them against publicly announcing major policy initiatives, programmes or legislative actions without first obtaining the approval of the Cabinet. The instruction, circulated by the Office of the Cabinet Secretary and signed by Professor Kwaku Danso-Boafo, emphasised that such announcements must be submitted through the appropriate channels before being regarded as official government policy.
The circular addresses what the government describes as a growing tendency among ministers to bypass established governance processes by unveiling initiatives “purportedly on behalf of government” without proper review or endorsement. According to the Cabinet Secretariat, this practice not only violates constitutional protocols but also undermines the principle of collective Cabinet responsibility upheld by the 1992 Constitution. The directive states that for the avoidance of doubt, “no public policy, programme or major initiative shall be considered a policy of Government unless it has been duly submitted to, deliberated upon, and approved by Cabinet.”
Ministers have been instructed to channel all proposed policies, programmes and legislative initiatives through the Chief Director of their respective ministries to the Cabinet Secretariat in order to be placed on the Cabinet agenda for consideration. The statement further warns that any public statement or initiative undertaken outside this procedural framework “shall not be deemed to represent official Government policy.”
The move is seen as part of efforts to strengthen internal coordination within government and ensure that policy announcements align with national priorities, are properly vetted and reflect a unified position. Analysts note that the directive could also signal an attempt by the executive branch to curtail unilateral actions by portfolio ministers that may cause confusion, duplication or mismatches with broader strategy and messaging.
Observers say the timing of the warning is significant, coming at a period when the government is rolling out several major initiatives and reforms, making coherence in communications and policy execution critical. For the public and private sectors tracking government signals, the instruction provides clarity on the threshold for what constitutes an official policy and underscores that ministers must act collectively rather than independently.
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