We're working hard to resolve economic crisis - Akufo-Addo

President Akufo-Addo is assuring Ghanaians that the Ghana project is unwavering and that he is confident that the country is on the right path.

Speaking at the 66th Independence Anniversary at Ho in the Volta region, the President said “the enemy we face is not each other. We can only win this battle if we stick together and pull in the same direction, regardless of our divergent viewpoints.”

“I am confident that we are on the right path, and I ask for your support so that we can continue the transformation of Ghana in peace”, he pointed out.

President Akufo-Addo admitted to the difficulties facing the economy, saying, “We are working hard to resolve them”.

“But maybe we should also count our blessings in how, together, we are managing the difficulties. We all see the images around the world. Here in Ghana, we have not had any fuel queues, we have not had any shortages of food and essential items, or the catastrophe of dumsor”, he added.

Continuing, the President also said major global developments have had a negative impact on our domestic economic performance. “We have witnessed historic heights in global inflation and food prices; rising global interest rates triggered by tightening of monetary policy of central banks across several advanced economies to tame rising inflation; an energy crisis with crude oil price reaching an unprecedented high at one point, above US$120 per barrel; the strengthening of the US dollar against all other currencies.”

He added that these phenomena have manifested in the form of the depreciation of our currency, the decline in gross international reserves, high inflation, elevated debt burden, significant fiscal stress, constrained domestic and external financing, and reduced GDP growth. It is these that have brought hardship on our people”.

The President further explained that the next 22 months of his mandate will be focused on restoring the economy “we had before Covid-19 and the Russian invasion of Ukraine to the period of rapid growth. It is a solemn pledge I am making to you, and my fellow Ghanaians, and one which I am determined to fulfill.”

He charged all Ghanaians to work to continue to achieve food security and modernization of agriculture, a value-added industrialized economy that no longer depends on the production and export of raw materials, among others.

The President also called for improvement in accountability, efficiency, and transparency in the delivery of public services and continue with the process of digitalization.