Economic crisis: Be serious, let Ghanaians know they must tighten their belts – Pianim to gov’t

Kwame Pianim

Ghanaian businessman and economist, Dr. Kwame Pianim has stressed the need for government to listen to advise and downsize as part of measures to address the economic challenges facing the country.

In an interview, he admonished government to get serious and declare a state of emergency if it wants to address the economic crisis.

“Now we have to put all our cards on the table, tell Ghanaians we are in a deep crisis.

“Those are the words that the IMF uses, we are in a deep crisis and to solve the deep crisis and get out we have to be serious, declare a state of emergency, and tell every Ghanaian we all have to tighten our belts, we are in economic crisis,” Dr. Kwame Pianim said during an engagement with TV3 on Ghana’s deal with the IMF.

The renowned economist continued, “Some of the symbolic cutting will show that we are reducing the size of government to make it lean and smart and that expenditures that are not going to yield output they are going to suspend them.”

Ghana in May finally secured a deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) after 10 months of negotiations.

The deal, a $3 billion Extended Credit Facility (ECF) comes with measures that when implemented by government will set the Ghanaian economy on the path to recovery.

Just like Dr. Kwame Pianim, many have insisted that the IMF deal will not save the country.

The proposal is that government must take bold steps and ensure the right things are done for the economy to recover.