The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta, has said Ghana is in far better shape now than it was 31 months ago.
According to him, “The shared successes achieved so far attests to the fact that, like the good stewards mentioned in the parable of the talents in the Bible, we have prudently utilised the very limited resources that we were entrusted with to achieve much more.”
He said the Akufo-Addo government since taking over 31 months earlier entrenched fiscal discipline through the strategic allocation of resources, efficiency in the use of public funds, as well as enhancing transparency and accountability in its management of the public purse.
“Candidate Akufo-Addo promised to protect the public purse and that is exactly what we have been doing at the Treasury,” he said.
Mr Ofori Atta said this Monday, July 29 when he delivered the government’s mid-year fiscal policy review of the 2019 budget statement and economic policy &supplementary estimates.
He said the Akufo-Addo government “leads, serves and obeys” and all key indicators for building a stronger economy had been cured effectively and are stronger now than they were 31 months ago.
“We are serving the people better in keeping their lights on; in getting our children into the classrooms and feeding them there; in getting our NHIS cards to work; in reducing the cost and hassle of clearing goods at our ports, in keeping more police on our streets, in helping farmers to produce more and earn more.”
He said inflation dropped to single-digit and dropping; Interest rates continue to drop; External payments position has strengthened; Exchange rates have been more stable; the fiscal deficit has reduced to below 5%; Real GDP growth has rebounded and remains robust; Debt to GDP ratio is below 60% and the banking sector rescued and recapitalized.
He said as a result of the bold and decisive measures taken to fix the banking crisis, “our banks are stronger and richer, and, with the cost of borrowing dropping, banks can and should, therefore, do a lot more to support the growth and expansion of business which will create more jobs under the stable environment that has been provided by Government for that exercise.”
He continued that the government knew the foundation for growing businesses and creating jobs everywhere was a vibrant, well-governed, well-resourced, competitive financial services sector, operating under a stable economic regime, that was why it could not watch the sector collapsing, even if it meant slowing down for a year or so on some of its own scheduled programmes.
In the recovery process, he said “we managed to set up the Consolidated Bank Ghana Limited and capitalised it with GH¢450 million. Just this month, CBG has released funds, totalling GH¢530 million to Cocobod for cocoa roads. We provided funding of GH¢11.2 billion to secure depositors’ funds in the failed banks. The Ghana Amalgamated Trust has provided funds, to capitalize solvent indigenous banks that were struggling to meet the enhanced minimum paid-up capital of GH¢400 million. We have recently provided an additional GH¢925 million for pay-outs to small depositors of the 386 microfinance institutions.”
He said confidence had been restored into the banking system, securing the otherwise distressed deposits of some 2,655,100 customers, as well as saving over 3,000 jobs. “Today, total banks’ assets have shot up to GH¢112.8 billion. Growth of credit to the private sector is rebounding assuredly by 16.8% in June 2019. I am, therefore, happy to announce confidently that Ghana is seeing the revival of that zealous, responsive and, at the same time, responsible banking environment we had been reduced to reminiscing.”
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM
