A National Issue - The Cedi fall: You need help, ask for it - Mahama to government

Former President John Mahama has called on the Akufo-Addo government to open up and admit their shortcomings in the management of the economy and call for help.

It comes on the back of the consistent fall in the Cedi against major trading currencies. The ​cedi has hit a record low of 5.6 to a dollar.

In a Facebook post, Mr. Mahama said: ” The recent free fall of the cedi against all major foreign currencies, may be exposing a deeper malaise in the “fundamentals of the economy”. It may serve Akufo-Addo/Bawumia and their economic team well to own up to their shortcomings and call a Senchi type stakeholder forum on the economy”.

The post also noted:” There are times when a leader or a party must admit that they do not have all the answers to the challenges facing the economy or a particular sector. At such times, it does not take away from your dignity, but adds to your credibility, when you create a consultative process that forges a consensus and allows a nation to move forward.

“I faced one such decision point as President in 2014. The 3-day Senchi Economic Forum was held in May 2014. It was a broad consultative process and even though it was boycotted by the opposition NPP, it achieved its objective of producing the famous Senchi Report which contributed to the Homegrown Fiscal Consolidation Programme.”

Meanwhile, the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has assured that the cedi will stabilise in the next few weeks.

Speaking to Journalists outside Parliament House Wednesday, March 13, 2019, Mr. Ofori-Atta said government is expecting large inflows of foreign exchange which will help turn around the value of the cedi.

“Really I am very confident that a reversal is going to occur and that it [cedi] is going to be pretty stable going forward. We have about 200 million dollars coming in from Cocobod and another 600 million from cocobod in a month or so…and that should close within the next weeks or so…with the type of capital that we expect in the few weeks we really expect a reversal and a stability,” the Finance Minister said