Bank of Ghana Board Member Isaac Adongo says the recent policy measures being rolled out by the central bank and the Finance Ministry are meant to provide Ghanaians with immediate relief.
He said this is especially true considering the hardship the NPP heaped on Ghana, so it is a relief from economic pressures, rising food prices and the cedi’s depreciation.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on Wednesday, May 14, the Bolga Central MP described the interventions as a coordinated effort between the central bank and government, emphasising that “this is an initial remedy.”
“What is happening now is an intentional policy implementation,” Mr Adongo told host Evans Mensah.
“It is a complementary effort from the Ministry of Finance and the central bank. The central bank is doing its bit, and government, under the leadership of the Finance Minister, is also doing its bit, so the two are collaborating.
“This is an initial remedy to give Ghanaians some relief, whilst the fruit that we really want to bear is to tackle food inflation head-on.”
Pressed on whether the cedi has been “arrested” as previously claimed by the former Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, Mr Adongo responded sarcastically.
“No, we have not arrested the cedi. The man who claimed to have arrested it is out there. What is happening to the cedi now is that we are gradually massaging it to find its true level.”
The ranking member of Parliament’s Finance Committee argued that the new administration is now restoring credibility and signalling to market players that the era of economic mismanagement is over.
“We are trying to let them know: ‘Hey, we are in Ghana now. Akufo-Addo is gone. Bawumia is gone. It is now Ato Forson and John Mahama. If you misbehave, we’ll deal with you.’ And they are beginning to say, ‘yes sir, yes sir.’ That’s what we are doing.”
He downplayed expectations of a dramatic recovery in the cedi’s value, saying the goal is not to force an unrealistic appreciation but to bring predictability and calm to the currency markets.
“What we are looking for is stability, not a quantum jump of the cedi from 15 cedis to 3 cedis. What we are doing now is to get the cedi to find the level that supports the economy.”
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