Dr. John Kwakye, Director of Research at the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), has urged for a national conversation aimed at rescuing the Cedi from its continued decline.
He has called on economists to contribute solutions to address the challenges facing the local currency.
In a series of posts on his X page, he stated, “As economists, we have a responsibility to save the diminishing Cedi. I invite all economists to propose one solution each. I will relay these to our economic managers. If they fail to act on them, at least we will have fulfilled our duty.
How can we, as economists, not have a solution for the struggling Cedi? What was the purpose of our education? We should feel embarrassed.”
He questioned how much more depreciation of the Cedi can be tolerated and why there seems to be a lack of urgency while the currency continues to weaken.
“The depreciation of the Cedi should be a source of embarrassment for all economists. We seem to have let down Ghanaians. We need a national dialogue to save the Cedi, as it appears to have been completely abandoned to fend for itself.”
Currently, the Cedi is trading at GH¢16.40 to one US dollar in the Forex Bureau and retail market.
The currency has experienced a slight decrease in value against the US dollar, bringing its year-to-date loss to approximately 26%.
This decline is attributed to increasing corporate demand and recent Eurobond coupon payments.
Despite a 7-day FX auction held by the Central Bank, which accepted all submitted bids totaling $51.4 million, the auction could not stabilize the Cedi, which depreciated by 0.15% week-on-week against the US dollar, closing the week at a mid-rate of GH¢16.38/$.
The Cedi also weakened by 0.24% and 0.70% week-on-week against the pound and euro, respectively.
