Nana Addo to speak today on cost of living crisis, ailing economy
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo will tonight, [Sunday, October 30, 2022] address Ghanaians on government’s plan to revive the economic shocks bedevilling the nation.
This is on the heels of mounting pressure on the President to speak on the economic difficulties citizens have faced in recent times.
The President’s address is expected to focus on the spiralling cost of living and the immediate reforms needed to restore economic growth.
The country has witnessed high food prices, steep depreciation of the cedi and the rising cost of fuel, sparking public outcry for an improved economy.
President Akufo-Addo is scheduled to speak at 8:00 pm.
Already, he has, in the past few days, met cabinet and other interest groups on how best to strengthen the fiscals.
Ghana’s economic indicators keep worsening.
The Ghana cedi for instance has seen a huge depreciation as it has lost close to 50 percent of its value since the beginning of the year.
Bloomberg has also rated the currency the worst-performing worldwide after considering a basket of 148 currencies worldwide.
Currently, inflation stands at 37.2 percent while Producer Price Inflation has risen to 45.5 percent putting majority of Ghanaians in a tight situation because as purchasing power keeps reducing amidst poor salaries.
Prices of food items are high, coupled with the increasing cost of transportation.
Ghanaians are paying more for transportation as fares have increased fares by 19%, a move necessitated by the continuous soaring prices of petroleum products at the various fuel pumps.
Currently, Diesel and Petrol are selling for over GH¢17 and GH¢15 respectively at major fuel pumps; a situation transport operators say is eroding their profit.
Worker unions are also demanding better working conditions. Manufacturers are adopting ways to cut down on operations in the wake of these economic difficulties.
As we speak, there are ongoing discussions between the government of Ghana and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a US$ 3 million bailout to salvage the economic downturn.
BY: Nii Larte Lartey
