Ghanaian Vice President Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang on Tuesday urged the various managers of the Ghanaian economy to adhere to prudent policy measures and sound fiscal discipline to sustain the returning trust in the economy.
Opoku-Agyemang said during the launch of the 60th anniversary of the introduction of the Ghana cedi currency that the government must lead by example through responsible expenditure and realistic revenue plans to ensure that the local cedi currency holds its ground among other global currencies.
“A reliable cedi helps businesses and industries to plan and compete effectively and attract long-term investments. To our farmers, stability means that the cost of farm inputs does not spiral out of control from one season to the next,” the vice president said.
For the public sector, she said a reliable cedi means better debt management and freeing enough resources for infrastructure for students and young people and more reliable jobs, while for households, it means less inflation, predictable food prices, and long-term planning.
She lauded the Bank of Ghana and the finance ministry for sound monetary and fiscal policies, which have taken the Ghanaian economy out of its recent crisis, urging that the policies must be sustained going forward to ensure a continued trust in the local economy and currency.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we must now protect what we have rebuilt through action from government, institutions, and citizens,” she emphasized.
The vice president urged that, “The government must lead by the example of real fiscal discipline—no more reckless borrowing or surging deficits that pass today’s problems to tomorrow’s generations. We must anchor public finances on realistic revenue plans, efficient funding, and long-term planning. Let every loan be tied to returns, and every cedi spent to a corresponding value. Furthermore, we must protect the independence of the central bank.”
In his remarks, central bank governor Johnson Asiama noted that the local currency, which, according to Bloomberg, was the world’s worst-performing currency in 2022, has become the best-performing currency globally this year. “Inflation dropped from the high of 54.1 percent in Dec. 2022 to 9.4 percent in September, and our gross international reserves have now exceeded 12 billion US dollars.”
Asiama urged all Ghanaians and stakeholders to cooperate with the managers of the economy to sustain the stability of the currency. Ghana introduced the cedi currency in 1965 to replace the Ghana pound, which it had inherited from Britain, its former colonial master.