The Minister of State at the Finance Ministry, Abena Osei Asare, has reiterated the government’s commitment to fiscal prudence and discipline in its expenditures to help sustain the slowdown in inflation.
This comes after inflation for May 2024 declined to 23.1% from the 25.0% recorded in April 2024.
“Government is committed to working with the Bank of Ghana to ensure that things do not get out of hand, in the area of slowing inflation to hit the end of year target,” she said.
She stated that the government was collaborating with the Bank of Ghana (BoG) to support the central bank’s monetary policies and prudent fiscal policies to achieve price stability.
“Some measures that the Bank of Ghana has implemented are already getting the required support, and we are also committed on the fiscal side to consolidate the gains made”, she reiterated.
“We have all seen how high inflation rate impacted badly on the economy and we are committed to making sure that we don’t get there again,” she added.
On the debt deal with bilateral creditors, Madam Osei Asare revealed that the government will now turn its attention to individual countries after reaching a deal with bilateral creditors.
“We should not forget that we now have a broad framework at the Official Creditor Committee level. That is good to guide our engagement with each bilateral country,” she said.
She described the development as a positive step, indicating that the government was expecting more donor partners to support the country.
“We expect more donor partners to react positively with some fresh funding to support the recovery of Ghana’s economy, and also some of the projects that have stalled because of these negotiations”.
Inflation rate developments
The inflation rate dropped from 25% in April 2024 to 23.1% in May this year, the lowest in 26 months.
According to the Ghana Statistical Service, the slowdown in the May inflation rate can be linked to favourable developments on the food component of inflation.
The Bank of Ghana is projecting inflation to end the year at a lower band of 13% and a higher band of 17%.