Cedi depreciation: BoG on top of issues - Financial analyst
Governors, Bank of Ghana; Elsie Addo Awadzi (L) Dr Ernest Addison (M) & Dr Maxwell Opoku Afari (R)
A financial analyst, Samuel Dawson has lauded the Bank of Ghana for its sterling efforts aimed at anchoring the Ghanaian economy despite uncertainty in the global economy.
Read full articleThis comes after a legal practitioner had petitioned the Attorney General to prosecute officials of the Central Bank for the depreciation of the cedi.
But Dawson believes the central bank has demonstrated precise leadership in dealing with both domestic and external developments within the economy which has strongly been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war among other factors.
He pointed out that some of these factors have resulted in Ghana not being able to access the capital markets to raise money as it has usually done over the years with government currently adopting homegrown solutions.
"The central bank has actually been on top issues to be fair, they have had to move ahead to implement measures which will help anchor the economy."
"At the second MPC meeting of this year, the bank had to hike the policy rate to 17 percent on the basis that the move will help stem inflation. Although rising inflation is not peculiar to only Ghana but a global one as a result of supply chain disruptions and other factors, most central banks across the world have to implement a similar strategy to address their respective situations," he explained.
The financial analyst also believes the depreciation of the cedi cannot entirely be blamed on the BoG as government is looking to raise some US$2 billion to sustain the economy, provide relief to the budget and balance of payments.
In recent developments, the BoG after its 106th MPC meeting outlined a number of measures it seeks to undertake in consonance with government to anchor Ghana's economy.
Meanwhile, the local currency in the first few months of this year has struggled against major trading currencies. However, the Bank of Ghana has assured of measures to restore the currency to a stable state.
