Ghana’s president Nana Akufo-Addo is under immense pressure by his own parliamentarians to sack Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta for poor management of the economy. The signs have been on the wall for long, but no one anticipated that on Tuesday 25 October, about 80 lawmakers out of 137 of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) in parliament, would dare the president to let his longest-serving head of treasury take an early leave else they will boycott government business. Ghana is under pressure to reverse an economic slide that rolls back recent gains that had seen the country rated as one of the world’s fastest growing markets. The Bank of Ghana has reportedly raised $84 million from the procedure so far. But the move appears to be squeezing the local currency market aggravating the cedi’s devaluation, according to JPMorgan, the investment bank. The cedi has lost at least 52% to the dollar this year (as of Oct. 20) making it the worst performing of 148 currencies tracked by Bloomberg. Aiming to stem its currency’s year-long spiral, Ghana’s central bank has taken a range of measures in the last two months including a crackdown with security operatives on supposedly unlicensed black market sellers on the streets of Accra. But the monetary overseer may have to scrutinize its own actions to understand the cedi’s precarious state.
SOURCE: QUARTZ AFRICA
More Stories
Trends for African Students Seeking Education Abroad
Floods and Landslides Batter Madagascar
Anyone Interested in East Africa’s Dynamic Urbanisation Process should have this Book
Filling the Gap in Locally Grown Techpreneurs
South Africa has Signed an Agreement to Reintroduce Dozens of Cheetahs in India
Enhancing Trust and Security in Digital Africa
Energy Giant Eni Signed an $8 billion Gas Deal with Libya’s State-run National Oil Corporation
Expectations of the Pope’s Visit to Africa
The First Muslim to Helm South Africa’s Biggest Metropolis
The First Africa Vegan Restaurant Week
Lagos Rising: Meet the African Designers Who are Ushering in a New Guard of Fashion
My Life in Food: Idris Elba on African Cuisine and Cooking with his Mum