The Governor of the Bank Dr. Johnson Asiama has refuted suggestions that recent economic gains are not policy-driven.
Former Vice President Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia has challenged the managers of the economy to name the policy measures that are driving the recent gains especially the appreciation of the cedi
Dr. Bawumia whose government handed over a troubled economy with huge debt overhangs and an underperforming cedi to the John Mahama administration about 5 months ago, took credit for the performing cedi by referencing the controversial gold for oil policy as the main factor.
Speaking at the Private Investor Roundtable organized by Invest Africa in partnership with Standard Chartered, Dr. Johnson Asiama said the economic gains were not conincidental but a reflection of deliberate action.
He said part of the gains being witnessed is because the Bank of Ghana under his leadership has “maintained a tight monetary policy stance, strengthened liquidity management through active Open Market Operations, and reinforced policy signalling.”
“We are also working in close coordination with the Ministry of Finance to ensure fiscal alignment with our disinflation and stabilization objectives”, he further enumerated.
To complement the monetary efforts being made by the Central Bank, Dr. Asiama said government was on the fiscal side “implementing deep expenditure controls and domestic revenue mobilization reforms to support debt sustainability.”
According to him these policy measures have been bolstered by the recent Staff-Level Agreement reached with “the IMF under the Fourth Review of the Extended Credit Facility programme and the sovereign credit rating upgrade by S&P from Selective Default to CCC+.”
Governor Johnson Asiama said the measures are part of a broad-based macroeconomic reset which is helping to “re-anchor expectations, restore fiscal and institutional credibility, and create an enabling environment for investment.”
The John Mahama led Government came under intense scrutiny from some members of the immediate past administration when it set an end of year growth target of 4.0% in the 2025 budget.
5 months into the year, Dr. Johnson Asiama said the managers of the economy were already seeing signals that the fundamentals were improving with the Ghana cedi having appreciated by 21.5% year-to-date, a sharp reversal of the 19.2% depreciation it experienced in 2024.
This, the Central Bank Governor said was a sign of policy credibility.
“Inflation has eased from 23.8% in December 2024 to 21.2% in April 2025, driven by tight monetary policy, exchange rate stability, and a broad moderation in price pressures.”
“Gross international reserves have climbed to US$10.67 billion, equivalent to 4.7 months of import cover, offering a meaningful cushion against external risks.”
“We posted a strong trade surplus of US$4.14 billion in the first four months of 2025 and a current account surplus of US$2.12 billion in Q1, underpinned by robust gold and cocoa exports,” Dr. Asiama recounts
Story: Sena Nombo/Radiogoldlive.com
