The recent depreciation of the Ghanaian cedi has sparked a heated debate between the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the administration of President John Dramani Mahama. This comes after a period of relative calm for the currency, which had seen significant gains earlier in the year.
Richard Ahiagbah, the Director of Communications for the NPP, has accused the Mahama administration of creating an “illusion of stability” through what he calls “financial waste.” Speaking on Channel One TV, he argued that the government’s previous efforts to strengthen the cedi were not based on sustainable policy but on “artificial inducement.”
“The artificial inducement they’ve given to the cedi, we’re losing it,” Ahiagbah stated. “If you’re looking at it, I am inclined to say that, that was financial waste or financial loss, by dumping all of those things to create a certain appearance of performance.”
In response, President Mahama defended the interventions by the Bank of Ghana, insisting they were essential to halt a rapid depreciation that was hindering economic planning. “I believe that it is about stopping rapid depreciation of the currency,” he explained during a media engagement. “When you have steep depreciation… it makes planning difficult. And so yes, Bank of Ghana has been intervening in the forex market but they’ve withdrawn.”
Amid the public debate, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Johnson Asiama, has sought to reassure markets. He stressed that the recent slide should not be seen as a collapse of stability. “The recent modest depreciation… reflects the market adjusting to reforms and seasonal trade patterns. It is not at all a reversal,” he said.
The cedi, which had topped global currency rankings earlier due to strong gold prices, has now slipped by 13% this quarter, representing the steepest decline worldwide according to Bloomberg data. This has erased part of the 50% gain recorded between April and June.
source: Citinewsroom