Nana Addo promises to build most business-friendly economy in Africa

Without oil in 2008, Ghana’s incoming President, claims an NPP government under the leadership of ex-president Kufuor attained a GDP growth rate of 9.1% which demonstrates his party’s competence when it comes to management of the economy.

President-elect, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, made this known when he addressed members of The Private Enterprise Federation (PEF) today.

The PEF represents over 80% of all Ghanaian businesses both in the formal and informal sector, and to the Akufo- Addo government, they would constitute a critical part of the solution to the main task ahead.

Under his leadership, he aims to build the most business-friendly and people-friendly economy in Africa, which will create jobs and prosperity for all Ghanaians; and this we intend to do through private sector empowerment.

He also expressed satisfaction concerning the sense of optimism and hope his victory as president-elect has brought to the business community.

“Since the Ghanaian people spoke with a clear voice and gave an overwhelming mandate to the NPP, I have been cheered by the general sense of optimism that has come over the entire population”, he said.  

 
Statement below

SPEECH BY NANA ADDO DANKWA AKUFO-ADDO, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE REPUBLIC, AT THE POST-AGM PRIVATE SECTOR FORUM OF THE PRIVATE ENTERPRISE FEDERATION (PEF), AT THE GIMPA EXECUTIVE CONFERENCE CENTRE, ON WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2016.

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, members of the Diplomatic Corps, and my dear friends, I am very glad to be among you today and I am grateful for this opportunity to address the Annual General Meeting of the members of The Private Enterprise Federation, PEF.

I am glad to see so many friends in the audience. This gives me comfort and confidence. I had a slight moment of hesitation about accepting your invitation at this time because I thought the timing was a bit awkward.

The elections are over, I am no longer a candidate, we have won an emphatic victory but our mandate does not come into effect until January 7.

I decided I should come to your gathering because as the apex Business Council in Ghana representing over 80% of all Ghanaian businesses both in the formal and informal sector, you constitute a critical part of the solution to the main task of the Akufo-Addo government.

I need to have you on board right from the start and there can’t be a better time to have this conversation. If, as we believe, the private sector is to lead in the development of the national economy, PEF and its members are key constituents in any discussion on Ghana’s future.

Since the Ghanaian people spoke with a clear voice and gave an overwhelming mandate to the NPP, I have been cheered by the general sense of optimism that has come over the entire population.

I have been particularly happy about the sense of optimism and hope among the business community.  I have, along with the rest of the country, heard about the reported reduction in prices of goods in the markets.

I suspect the approach of Christmas has something to do with these price reductions, but I am happy to go along with the suggestion that they are meant to demonstrate confidence in the incoming government.

I am in full support of any measure that cheers up the long suffering people of Ghana. I need a happy and confident people to tackle the huge problems that we face.

I need a confident, imaginative and hardworking business community to create the prosperous Ghana we dream of.  The NPP’s vision for Ghana is to build a fair and prosperous society in a democratic, united nation.

To achieve this, we need a well-educated and skilled population, an efficient public service with strong institutions and a competitive economy that is capable of producing sustainable growth, jobs and shared benefits for all.

We have laid out our plans in our Manifesto which we call Change: An Agenda for Jobs, which I am sure you have all read from cover to cover already. Bear with me though as I pick out some parts just for emphasis.

We aim to build the most business-friendly and people-friendly economy in Africa, which will create jobs and prosperity for all Ghanaians; and this we intend to do through private sector empowerment.

– I repeat through private sector empowerment.

Government’s role is to create the atmosphere for the private sector to flourish.

We aim to achieve double digit GDP growth annually for the next four years, and this is possible if you remember that under the Kufuor-led NPP government the economy attained a GDP growth rate of 9.1% in 2008 without oil.

We will reduce the cost of doing business, maintain fiscal discipline, reduce government borrowing and reduce interest rates to spur private sector investment.

Our economic programme will enhance agricultural production and productivity, along with a transformation of the economy through value- addition to our raw materials in a process of rapid industrialization.

The NPP will invest in our people through the provision of quality education and healthcare, as well as affordable housing.

The role of government would  be  one  of  providing  an  enabling  environment  for  the  private sector to thrive, as well as putting in place social policies to protect the disadvantaged and vulnerable in society.

In particular, the NPP will implement policies to invest in rural, coastal, Zongo and inner city communities. To attain a competitive economy that is capable of producing sustainable growth, jobs and shared benefits for all – two key stakeholders must play their roles

1.   The Government, by setting the environment and climate to allow private sector to flourish, and
    

2.   The Private Sector to have the confidence to exploit all the opportunities offered by such a business friendly administration.

Once in government, our priority is to do all we can to give YOU the confidence of a positive business environment devoid of arbitrary and irrational policy initiatives and one that gives YOU the confidence to do what you do best – INVEST IN THE NUMEROUS OPPORTUNITIES TO CREATE JOBS AND PROPSPERITY

To achieve our objectives, our principal economic policy direction will be to: restore macroeconomic stability, shift  the  focus  of  economic  management  from  taxation  to production, manage the economy competently, and make the machinery of government work to deliver the benefits of progress to Ghanaians.

Restoring Macroeconomic Stability

The NPP will restore and maintain macroeconomic stability through the pursuit of sound policies on the basis of an enhanced institutional framework. Macroeconomic stability is built around three pillars: monetary discipline, fiscal discipline and financial stability.

To reinforce monetary discipline, the Bank of Ghana Act, 2002 (Act 612) established the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to guide the implementation of monetary policy. The other two pillars (fiscal discipline and financial stability) have no such institutional anchors.

Enhancing Fiscal Discipline

Fiscal indiscipline has been the bane of economic management in the country. To address this, the IMF recently insisted on the passage of a Public Financial Management Act.

However, the law, as enacted, is woefully inadequate, because it lacks the key elements that will protect the public purse from abuse.

Fiscal policy implementation, as it stands now, lacks three basic elements; the absence of a transparent institutional arrangement for providing quality fiscal information to the public, the absence of a mechanism for ensuring accountability in implementing optimal fiscal policies to guarantee the stability of the system, and the absence of an institution to ensure the credibility of fiscal projections provided by the Government.

To address the problem of the current high public debt levels and the country’s high risk of debt distress, our government will adopt and implement rules to anchor fiscal policy implementation. For example, there will be specific targets for the reduction of government borrowing and debt.

We intend to enact a Fiscal Responsibility Law (FRL) to bring comprehensiveness, accountability, transparency and stability to the entire budgetary process. Under this law, a Fiscal Council would be established to set up medium-term fiscal policy and monitor compliance.

In addition, to restore overall macroeconomic stability, we will:

1. undertake financial sector reform to deepen financial markets, promote financial inclusion, enhance the supervision and regulation of the financial institutions and move the country’s payment system towards an electronic payments system

2. implement a strategy aimed at repositioning the country as an International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) within the region to create jobs

3. formalize the economy through the establishment of a national database, using the National Identification System as the primary identifier, with linkages to the databases of institutions such as the Police, National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Passport Office, Immigration, Courts, Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA), and

4. Stabilize the currency exchange rate for the long term through prudent and disciplined macroeconomic management, an increase in domestic production, and an increase in exports.