A professor of Economics with the University of Ghana Business School, Patrick Assuming is criticizing the Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin for telling businesses what to do as regards the cedi-dollar rate.
Afenyo-Markin at a press conference asked businesses to stop changing their cedis into dollars in the hope of reaping from the rampant volatility of the local currency.
“Perhaps, I may have to urge businessmen not to be changing their cedi into dollar because the rate will be coming down,” Afenyo-Markin said.
This follows an earlier similar comment from the Bank of Ghana. But in an interview with TV3 and on 3FM Midday News, Patrick Assuming said the Majority Leader has no business telling people how to run their businesses.
“First of all, I think it was such a surprising comment to hear coming from the Majority Leader. It is not in the place of the Majority Leader to tell businesses how to do their business,” he noted.
Professor Asuming said the focus should be on fixing the problems with the cedi. He also accused politicians of benefiting from the problem.
“There are people who are benefiting from the laxity (in the system) and when that happens, it’s difficult to see the regulation being enforced,” Prof Assuming noted.
The dollar as at today, June 10, is selling at GHC14.65 in some banks whilst it is selling at over 15 cedis in forex bureaus.
The Bank of Ghana at a press conference in the last week of May 2024 said that the Ghana cedi had depreciated by about 14.6% to the US dollar as of May 2024.
The Bank said that the cedi lost 7.7% in value to the dollar in March 2024 and depreciated by 10.5% against the dollar in April 2024.
Whilst it is going for GH¢15 on average against the dollar on the retail market, the Bank of Ghana is currently quoting a dollar to a little over GHC14.
Businesses have called on the government to urgently deal with the problem of the cedi’s volatility to forex currencies.
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You can’t tell businessmen what to do – Economics lecturer tells Afenyo-Markin | 3News
By Beatrice Adu
