Mahama: Economy Reeling From Unprecedented Levels Of Debt

President John Dramani Mahama on Monday vowed to steer the nation towards a brighter and a more prosperous path.

In his keynote address at the National Economic Dialogue in Accra, the President said when he assumed office barely two months ago he inherited an economy that was in a state of deep crisis, one that was weighted down by numerous challenges.

He said the economy was reeling from unprecedented levels of debt, soaring inflation, high unemployment, declining levels of foreign direct investment and low business confidence; adding that the financial struggles that the nation was facing have not arisen overnight.

President Mahama said they had been the result of several years of financial mismanagement, irresponsible borrowing, reckless spending and weak leadership that failed to address the underlying structural issues within their economy.

The President said this pervasive mismanagement culminated in Ghana’s defaults on its debt obligations and that this marked a devastating milestone for the country, spawning a cascade of economic problems that have severely impacted on our people.

He said Ghana was at a critical crossroads in its economic development; adding that the challenges before Ghanaians were stark and the economic distress they faced was undeniable.

He said, however, their collective resilience, ingenuity and determination had always been the driving force of their nation’s progress.

“As President, I am committed to ensuring that the lessons learned from this crisis will shape the decisions we make in the years ahead,” he said.

“The mistakes of the past must not define our future and I vow to do everything in my power to steer this nation towards a brighter and more prosperous path.”

The President said: “My fellow citizens, I know that the road to economic recovery will be challenging but we must not relent in our quest to rebuild the Ghana we all want, for the sake of our children and our children’s children.

“We owe it to ourselves, our children and our country to rebuild an economy that is resilient, that is sustainable and capable of delivering real opportunities for every citizen. My priority as President is to restore macro-economic stability.”

He said Ghanaians must enforce responsible public financial management and ensure fiscal discipline at all levels of government, while working to reduce hardships for our people.

President Mahama said under his leadership, the Bank of Ghana’s independence would be safeguarded to implement prudent monetary policies that curb inflation and stabilise their currency and rebuild their foreign reserves.

“We must never again allow reckless borrowing and excessive government spending to undermine our progress,” he said.

The President said fiscal responsibility must become the bedrock of national development strategy and every single spend must deliver tangible value to the Ghanaian people.

“We must review our laws to eliminate excessive waste in the procurement of government supplies and projects. Single-source procurement must be the rare exception rather than the norm”.

The President said Ghanaians must also subject government projects above a certain threshold to value-for-money audits.

The Government envisions the National Economic Dialogue to achieve objectives such as communicating the true state of Ghana’s economy to stakeholders and the people of Ghana, develop a homegrown fiscal consolidation programme to guide the national budget and to highlight key structural reforms and policy priorities essential for resetting the economy.

Dr Ishmael Yamson, Chairman of the National Economic Dialogue Planning Committee, said he agreed with that Ghana’s economy needs to be reset.

He said the overwhelming majority of the nation’s problems were home grown, which only required the right leadership to resolve.

GNA

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