Nana Addo can’t solve Ghana’s problem in his first year – IMANI

Vice President of policy think-tank IMANI-Ghana, Kofi Bentil has said Ghanaians should not expect economic relief in the first year of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

According to him, Ghana’s economic fundamentals are too weak to see signs of improvement within a year.

Speaking on Joy FM’s News File show on Saturday 25th February, 2017, Bentil said Nana Addo should not try to solve all of Ghana’s problems and please everyone r.

“If a problem must be solved in a durable way, we must be deliberate about it, thinking through instead of reacting. NPP, we think you can solve the problem…but please don’t try and solve everything tomorrow, you’ll make the same old mistakes. Look, students are out there stressed and stranded, some of them send me emails that their fees have not been paid, and basically being thrown out.

“Everywhere you pass there are real problems, but again if you try and solve every problem, you are not going to give us a durable enough solution, so let’s take our time and go about it in a very correct way and not try to please every body in the first year,” Bentil said.

President Nana Addo during his presentation of his maiden State of the Nation Address in Parliament said he will not allow Ghana’s economy to collapse under his watch, despite inheriting a challenging economy from the previous National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration.
He stated that, the “reality of Ghana’s finances are quite stark as a result of policy choices.”

He said “we find ourselves in the situation where Ghana’s total revenue is consumed by three main budgetary lines. Wages and salaries, interest and payments and amortisation and statutory payments.”

“This means that anything else that government has to do outside of these lines would have to be financed by borrowing or aid. After eight years of the previous government, there is practically no fiscal space left.”