Install currency board to save the cedi – Prof Steve Hanke reiterates

Steve H. Hanke a professor of Applied Economics at the Johns Hopkins University, has reiterated his point that the managers of the Ghanaian economy need to establish a currency board in order to save the fallen cedi against the dollar.

The Professor, who is based in the US, for some time now has been monitoring and commenting on the Ghanaian economy and how the legal tender is depreciating against the US dollar.

He noted in his October 20 tweet that the cedi has depreciated by 43.98% against the US dollar since January 2022 to be placed 4th on his weekly Hanke’s currency watchlist.

He said, for the cedi to gain its strength and appreciate against the US dollar, the President together with the managers of the Ghanaian economy must install a currency board.

“The Ghanaian cedi has depreciated against the USD by 43.98% since Jan 2022, which is why #Ghana takes the 4th place in this week Hanke’s #CurrencyWatchlist. To save the cedi, GHA must install a #CurrencyBoard, NOW,” Prof. Steve Hanke’s tweeted.

The Cedi has recently been classified by Bloomberg as the worst-performing currency against the US Dollar.

Currently, the Cedi is trading at around GH₵13 – GH₵14 to a dollar at some forex bureaus. The depreciation rate is a contributory factor for the ongoing shop closures ordered by the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA).

According to the group, the fast depreciation of the Cedi is eroding their profits and also increasing the cost of doing business.