Former Deputy Finance Minister and Nhyiaeso MP, Dr Stephen Amoah, has defended the Akufo-Addo administration’s decision to seek an International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme, saying the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia-Ukraine war were the main shocks that pushed Ghana to the Fund.1
His comments follow the current NDC government’s announcement that Ghana has transitioned from the IMF-supported bailout programme to the Policy Coordination Instrument (PCI), marking the country’s exit from the fund-supported programme.
Speaking on Citi Eyewitness News on Monday, May 18, Dr Amoah rejected claims that Ghana’s economic crisis was solely caused by policy failures under the previous administration.
He said Ghana’s economy was performing strongly before the global shocks, pointing to average economic growth, an inflation rate of about 7% and strong reserves during the first three years of the Akufo-Addo administration.
“The severity that actually drove us to IMF was COVID and the Russian-Ukraine war because in the first three years we were growing averagely, our inflation rate was 7%, our reserves, everything,” he said.
Dr Amoah also said the previous government implemented what he described as some of the most enviable pro-poor policies through prudent economic management.
“We were running one of the most enviable pro-poor policy as a result of prudent economic management, so we were doing well,” he stated.
He, however, acknowledged that Ghana’s economic challenges are also linked to long-standing structural weaknesses, particularly the country’s dependence on imports and spending patterns that have continued under successive governments.
Dr Amoah further maintained that the Akufo-Addo administration had already begun positioning the economy towards fiscal discipline and consolidation before leaving office.
- This article was first published on citinewsroom.com by Juliana Odame Asare ↩︎