The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has commended the Bank of Ghana (BoG) for the role it has played in the last seven years to maintain economic stability and development of the country.
“In the last seven years, the BoG has distinguished itself in discharging its duties to the admiration of all well-meaning Ghanaians. It has been a sound banker to the government and a safe custodian of the country’s money,” the President stated this during the 2023 end of year cocktail of the BoG.
According to President Akufo-Addo, BoG had also been an efficient currency manager, a reliable source of liquidity and a dependable lender of last resort.
“When COVID-19 struck with its dire consequences for the country, the BoG, with the support of the commercial banks, instituted the GH¢3 billion credit and stimulus package to help revitalise industries, especially the pharmaceutical, hospitality and manufacturing sectors and we have all seen the effects of this intervention, evidenced by the growth of the economy,” he stressed.
He said the government introduced corrective measures to address the imbalances in the economy following the COVID-19 pandemic and with support from the BoG macro-economic stability was being restored.
President Akufo-Addo indicated that there was clear evidence that inflation was being contained, saying “From 54 per cent in December 2022 to 26.4 per cent in November 2023. We are also witnessing sustained stability of the exchange rate.”
He said the recent policy measures introduced by the BoG were commendable and in line with efforts in moving Ghana to a situation beyond aid.
President Akufo-Addo said he had taken keen interest in the bank’s role in the digitisation of the economy and the architecture of our payment system had been transformed completely and financial inclusion had been deepened to ensure shared growth for all Ghanaians.
“All these make the BoG an institution of excellence, reflecting the recent international recognitions of the central bank. The BoG has won the central bank of the year awards two times with the governor, Dr Ernest Addison on one occasion being adjudged the central bank governor of the year,” he stated.
The Governor of the BoG, Dr Ernest Addison, in his remarks said we “Have a lot to be thankful for as another challenging but fulfilling year gradually draws to a close, and how best to end the year than to have an announcement today of the biggest drop in inflation this year, now at 26.4 percent.”
He said the policy mix under the International Monetary Fund-supported Post COVID-19 Program for Economic Growth programme was gradually yielding positive results.
“From the peak of 54.1 percent in December 2022, headline inflation has declined to 35.2 per cent in October 2023 and today it has fallen to 26.4 per cent. I kept on reminding people that inflation was at 12.7 per cent in December 2021 and what we saw in 2022 should not be used to judge us. As you are aware there has been considerable noise from our detractors who have celebrated the high inflation recorded in 2022. Today we are vindicated that inflation in 2022 was just a blip and we are quickly returning to where we were before the crisis,” Dr Addison, stated.
The Governor said the BoG had invested heavily in technology to correct some of the weaknesses the Bank inherited with data integrity by Banks that misreported leading to failures in Banks and other Specialised-Deposit Institutions in 2016, adding that “We have also been working to deepen the digitisation drive in the economy, including the development of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).”
BY KINGSLEY ASARE