By: Henrietta Afful
A Former Deputy Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament for Cape Coast South, Kweku George Ricketts-Hagan, says the 2022 Economic Policy and Budget Statement must focus on Ghana’s debt situation.
Speaking on the GTV’s Breakfast Show, the MP for Cape Coast South, Kweku George Ricketts-Hagan said Ghana’s debt has become astronomical and the budget must provide measures to address the rising debt.
“The debt has actually become quite astronomical and we will want to look at it and see if there is any light at the end of the tunnel in terms of whether we will be able to reduce this debt” he said.
Another area that should be keenly looked at according to Mr Ricketts-Hagan is the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) projections by the Finance Minister.
He noted that GDP is key to debt reduction and its projection will indicate whether the country is moving in the right direction or not in terms of being able to hold the economy and build revenue in order to pay Ghana’s debt.
“A bigger GDP will automatically reduce the debt for us” he added.
He said though Ghana has been enjoying low inflation with single digits for some years now, the government needs to be cautious of that.
“…The inflation game has changed and I think that is what we need to look at instead of just praising ourselves about inflation, is to look at what is actually causing inflation because post-pandemic inflation should be looked at differently…Mr Kweku George Ricketts-Hagan added.
Below Is The Full Interview
