Bank of Ghana’s MPC members to hold emergency meeting amid unprecedented currency slump

• The MPC members will meet on August 17, 2022, in Accra to discuss pressing issues in the economy.
• The outcome of the meeting would be communicated to the public, the apex bank said in a statement.
• This is an emergency meeting because the MPC members aren’t scheduled to meet until September.

Members of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of Ghana will gather tomorrow in Accra during an emergency meeting.

A statement by the Ghanaian apex bank, seen by Ikeanumba Africa, briefly explained that the meeting would be an avenue “to review recent developments in the economy.”

Under normal circumstances, the MPC members are not scheduled to meet until the last week of September. However, unprecedented economic challenges, ranging from deteriorating cedi to high inflation and the rising cost of living, have warranted the emergency meeting.

Checks by Ikeanumba Africa showed that the cedi plunged to a record low on Monday, whilst maintaining its position as the second worst performing currency in the world in 2022, second only to the Sri Lankan rupee. The Ghanaian currency has been underperforming since January this year.

Meanwhile, recent stats for July have shown that Ghana’s inflation rate surged for the 15th consecutive month to 31.7%. This is the highest level on record since December 2003.

The cedi’s steady decline against the dollar, coupled with the rising inflationary pressure in the country, has inevitably caused the cost of living to skyrocket.

The costs of importing products (like fuel and food items) have surged. And the prices of imported products have also been outpacing their local counterparts for the past four months.

Recall that in June, hundreds of Ghanaians were in the streets for days, protesting against worsening economic hardship in the country. The situation has since deteriorated, and the government is trying to avoid a repeat of the protest.

Among the measures taken to address the economic hardship include the reversal of the government’s policy decision not to seek loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The government now wants to borrow $3 billion from the multilateral lender.

The loan would help strengthen the Bank of Ghana’s monetary policy as it tries to build the much-needed buffers that would help restore macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability.