The government is seeking to build on positive indicators and scale up on economic expansion to benefit all Ghanaians in 2024, Deputy Finance Minister Abena Osei-Asare has revealed.
As the government prepares for a crucial year towards the end of another term, the MP for Atiwa East was confident that the 2024 Budget and Government’s Fiscal Policy dubbed ‘Nkunim’ (Victory) would bring financial and economic relief to citizens.
“We have consistently mentioned that we will do everything possible to bring the economy back on track, and clearly, the numbers tell that story,” She said.
“The focus of the budget is on stabilising the economy and then propelling it to grow.
She continued: “Most of it will be done by the private sector because if you want the economy to grow and to see the prospects that we all yearn for, the public sector, that is, the government, will provide the enabling environment, infrastructure and everything it takes and then work together with the private sector to make sure we see that stability and growth that we talk about. That is what will create wealth, and that is what will bring the jobs that we are looking for”.
A buoyant private sector is expected on account of some eight tax reliefs and other interventions captured in the budget to support businesses.
Significant portions of the projected GH¢226.7 billion expenditure in 2024 are expected in some productive areas such as infrastructure development, education, healthcare, agriculture, and job creation.
The annual budget statement presented to lawmakers on Wednesday projected a milestone of over GH₵1 trillion in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the first time.
The total debt has declined from 73.1% of GDP at the end of 2022 to 66.4% of GDP as of September 2023, providing confidence for investors.
Completing external debt restructuring is expected to improve Ghana’s debt situation in the coming weeks and improve Ghana’s position to receive additional disbursements under a $3 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan programme.
The government is optimistic about attaining an overall real GDP growth of at least 2.8 per cent and end-period inflation rate of 15.0 per cent in 2024.
“The Cedi has stabilised against the US dollar since early 2023 with a year-to-date cumulative depreciation of 25.7 per cent compared to 54.1 per cent over the same period in 2022. Specifically, the cedi has only depreciated by 6.4 per cent on a cumulative basis since February 2023 compared to 53.9 per cent over the same period in 2022,” the budget statement explained.
At the same time, inflation is declining from 54.1 per cent in December 2022 to 35.2 per cent in October 2023.
