Economic management team applying American books to African problems – Hassan Ayariga

Hassan Ayariga entreats govt to set up parallel economic management team

Hassan Ayariga blames government’s economic management for Ghana’s economic woes

Economic management team has failed us, says Hassan Ayariga

Founder of the All People’s Congress (APC), Hassan Ayariga, has blamed government’s economic management team for the current challenges confronting the nation’s economy.

Speaking in a recent interview with journalist Kofi Adoma Nwanwani, the former presidential candidate called on the president to set up a parallel bipartisan economic management team to complement the existing one headed by the vice president.

“Our businessmen like us and many are becoming poorer as against our counterparts in the US and Europe. In 2007/2008 when Kufour brought in the new Ghana Cedi, a cedi was 0.87 pesewa to a dollar. So if I had GH₵10 million in my account back then, I was $112 million richer. Ten years down the lane, if I have GH₵10 million still lying in my account its about $18 million today. If my counterpart had $100 million in his account back then, it is still the same.

“Why? It’s about lack of a proper economic management team and I have been saying it is not about professors, doctors and engineers or whatever you call them; those with the book long that you can call economic management team. Our economic management team has failed us. And because they have failed us, we are unable to manage the economy properly,” he stated.

He noted that government can cure the situation by bringing onboard another economic management team made up of competent individuals regardless of their political affiliations.

He accused government’s economic management team of applying principles suitable to Western economies on Ghana’s economy which he stated required principles tailored for an African economy.

“They are reading American books and applying to African economic problems. The African economic problems are totally different from American economic problems. Where they have gotten to, their books reflect their economic status of economic challenges and indices. Where we are, we have to create our own books that marry our problems.

“So why will you go and bring economists from Harvard, from Oxford to come be telling us about our problems? When our problems are merely ones from Bawku, Bolga and Tamale, that we cannot get food to eat and you are reading books,” he said.