Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia
Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia yesterday laid bare the plan of President Akufo-Addo’s New Patriotic Party (NPP) government in achieving the much talked-about ‘Ghana Beyond Aid’ mantra.
Speaking at the Norway-Ghana Business and Investment Forum in Accra, he admitted, “We are under no illusion that this is easier said than done. But an even greater illusion is to think that we can build a sustainably good society on the inexhaustible charity of others. History provides no such examples. And we cannot hope that our fortunes will be different.”
Strategy
He therefore, noted that to build a ‘Ghana Beyond Aid,’ government would need some long-term pillars, including but not limited to strengthening the knowledge, scientific and technical capacity of the citizens.
The veep said that could be done by improving access and quality of the educational system, leveraging on its (Ghana’s) natural resources for development through value addition, or failing that, at a fair and mutually acceptable and beneficial terms of exchange.
Dr Bawumia also talked about placing greater premium on cross-border and overseas trade and investment, deepening and enhancing efficiency in domestic revenue mobilization whiles enhancing efficiency in the allocation of public resources and greater accountability in the use of these resources, among other policies.
He indicated that building a ‘Ghana Beyond Aid’ requires the mobilization and leveraging of domestic savings and revenues, “as well as our vast resources in a more effective and efficient manner to ensure development, create wealth for the people; expand financial inclusion with credit services, saving systems for all and financing through local capital markets in local currencies.
He underscored, “The vision to build a Ghana Beyond aid is not mere rhetoric. Nor should it be seen as one of the many passing political platitudes in the past. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and his government are clear in their thinking about where they want to take this country and the pathways of getting there.”
For a developing economy like Ghana’s – still on the fringes to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and aspiring to enter the arena of the SDGs – the vice president, who happens to be an economist himself, said, “Transitional opportunities are often needed for the attainment of self-sufficiency in various ways. There is much we must do to reach our desired destination.”
He indicated, “To be able to attract the right level of mutually beneficial investment and trade, the local economy must be seen to be sound and business-friendly.”
That, he said, has been a major pre-occupation of the government of President Akufo-Addo from January 2017.
Progress Report
Since taking over the administration of the country, Dr Bawumia averred, “Our fundamental objective, among other things, has been to restore macroeconomic stability to levels that can stimulate growth, improve the overall business environment and striking the right balance between fiscal consolidation and growth.”
This balance, according to him, “requires making credible policy choices that will create the fiscal space to implement growth-enhancing initiatives.”
“So far,” he revealed, “We have recorded some significant successes. We have managed to secure significant improvements in the trends of key macroeconomic indicators such as inflation, exchange rates and real GDP growth rates.”
Apart from that, he pointed out, “The central bank policy rate has fallen by about 550 basis points and alongside other government policies, lending and mortgage rates are declining. We have reduced our debt to GDP ratio below the 70% threshold and attained relative stability for the local currency.”
Dr Mahamudu Bawumia posited, “We have significantly reduced the fiscal deficit from 9.4% to about 5.6% of GDP and still moving by aligning public expenditure with domestic revenue, as well as attain a primary balance surplus. The industry sector of our economy has seen substantial growth.”
By Charles Takyi-Boadu, Presidential Correspondent