The CEO of the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI), Mark Badu-Aboagye, has expressed worries about the possible effects of a long-term strategy to address the Cedi’s devaluation on local businesses, emphasizing the need for short-term measures to prevent business collapse.
Badu-Aboagye stressed that the government must take immediate action to introduce short-term solutions to stem the swift depreciation of the Cedi, as the situation demands prompt intervention to prevent further economic damage.
Furthermore, he sounded the alarm that without swift action, many businesses will succumb to the crisis before long-term measures can take hold, and urged policymakers to prioritize short-term relief, as businesses cannot afford to wait.
“For a business, we need to survive in the short term before we talk about the long term. Fine, the minister said that Bawumia will come out with a longer-term structure. That is fine but by the time he comes back with that long-term structure, I bet you a lot of businesses would have collapsed”.
Mark Badu-Aboagye
He also drew attention to Ghana’s struggles in competing globally, casting doubt on the effectiveness of the country’s export strategy and its ability to thrive in the international market.
As such, Mr. Aboagye emphasized that Ghana’s economic growth and export success hinge on its ability to identify and export high-quality products that meet international standards, underscoring the need for a strategic approach to product selection in a competitive global market.
“If we take our product to the international market, will somebody choose our product against the one coming from another country with high quality and low price?” – Mark Badu-Aboagye
Moreover, Mr. Aboagye noted that the current economic conditions and exorbitant production costs make it exceedingly challenging to manufacture goods in Ghana, highlighting the need for urgent interventions to address these obstacles.
As such, he indicated that should the situation persist, manufacturers will be unable to sell their goods in the international market, resulting in a lack of foreign exchange earnings for the country.
Gov’t Works To Mitigate Cedi Devaluation Impact
Meanwhile, Stephen Amoah, the Deputy Minister of Finance, stated that the government is actively working to minimize the effects of the Cedi’s devaluation between now and December.
According to the Deputy Minister, the government’s strategy involves attracting significant dollar inflows to reinforce the Cedi’s supply, ultimately making it more competitive in the global market.
However, he noted this solution provides temporary relief as he acknowledged that Ghana has historically relied on short-term fixes.
“We normally find short-term approaches. So it becomes like today we have syndicated loan of syndication loan. We have IMF or World Bank loans…and then after some time, we come back to zero”.
Stephen Amoah
Furthermore, Dr. Amoah emphasized that a long-term approach is essential to tackle the Cedi’s devaluation, as short-term solutions merely provide temporary relief while ultimately perpetuating the country’s economic challenges.
He appealed to all stakeholders to back the government’s plan for a long-term solution to the Cedi’s woes, emphasizing that partisan affiliations aside, all Ghanaians must unite behind the government to address this critical issue, regardless of whether it’s an NPP or NDC administration.
He also denounced the tendency of the two dominant political parties to politicize crucial decisions, regardless of their origin, deeming this attitude detrimental to progress and development. “I am tired of NPP blaming NDC and NDC blaming NPP”, he added.
Moreover, Dr. Amoah appealed to Ghanaians to vote for Dr. Bawumia as President in the upcoming December 7 elections, entrusting him to develop a comprehensive long-term plan to effectively address the Cedi’s depreciation and promote economic stability.
“We are doing our best to stabilize the Cedi, which I said is a short-term approach, but we need a long-term approach to resolve the issue through a framework, and then I proposed that to achieve that, we will design a long-term approach when Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia is elected president.”
Stephen Amoah
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