The former Minority Leader and Member of Parliament for Tamale South, Haruna Iddrisu, has stated that the real challenge of the Ghanaian economy is the ever-depreciating cedi.
The Finance Minister is expected to lay an economic policy and budget statement before parliament the ensuing year.
Ahead of the presentation, the Honorable member underscored that the cedi’s depreciation is what all Ghanaians must fight to ensure the economy recovers.
“As a country, all of us, including those of us in the NDC must begin looking for answers as to how to deal with the continuous depreciation of the cedi. We need to work to expand our exports, we need to work to prepare to prevent foreign change in this country. Many of you have not looked at the mathematics.
Haruna Iddrisu
“If you took three million USD as a businessman, in 2021, that was the GHS 18 million. Today, the same USD 3 million is GHS 30 million. What activity do you take that can give you such profitability to be able to amortize this particular loan? So as a state if you are servicing 29 billion dollars at an exchange rate of GHS 6.00 to GHS 8.00, it is now GHS12.00. What revenue mobilization measure can give you enough resources to contain this.”
Haruna Iddrisu
“This is the country’s nemesis; our economic nemesis is arresting the depreciation of the cedi”, he stressed.
Ghana’s import-dependent economy poses significant downsides, contributing to trade imbalances, currency depreciation, and vulnerability to external shocks. Relying heavily on imported goods strains the country’s foreign exchange reserves, impacting economic stability. Persistent trade deficits can lead to increased external debt and hinder domestic industries, limiting job creation. Diversifying the economy and promoting domestic production are crucial for mitigating these challenges and fostering sustainable economic growth.
IMF “Cooked” Budget
Furthermore, Samuel Nartey George, the Member of Parliament for Ningo Prampram, has contended that the forthcoming 2024 budget statement, slated for presentation by the Finance Minister on Wednesday, November 15, lacks substance. George asserted that Ghanaians should anticipate a budget crafted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) due to the perceived lack of control by the Finance Minister over the budgetary process. “He is coming to read what the IMF has written for him. You have a Finance Minister who has no control over the budget. Once he has no control over the budget, he is coming to read what the IMF has written for him; there is no substance that you can expect.”
Sam George Nartey
“The IMF is known for one thing, austerity, and so we should expect that they will tell the government to cut down on expenditure, which means that critical infrastructure that we need like roads, education, hospitals, the government will have to cut it down. Don’t expect the government to cut down their traveling expenses, so they are going to cut what benefits the public, they won’t cut what benefits the president and his appointees.”
Samuel Nartey George
However, the Finance Ministry has characterized the 2024 budget statement as a vital document set to be presented by the Minister. The Ministry emphasized that the budget follows the successful completion of the first review of the three-year program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In an earlier release, the ministry assured the country of deepening stability and promoting growth.
“It comes just after the successful first review of the three-year US 3 billion IMF-ECF program. It will also heighten among others, the performance of the economy, efforts to boost the productive capacity of the economy through the new growth strategy, fiscal measures, and debt management strategies to deepen stability and promote growth.”
Ken Ofori Atta
He is expected to fulfill this constitutional duty on Wednesday, November 15, 2023.
