GITFiC backs new benchmark values
The Ghana International Trade and Conference (GITFiC) has called for sanity within Ghana’s trading space and urged the business community to be accommodative and adjust to government’s policies in the face of the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Considering the current global economic downturn as a result of the pandemic, economies around the world are critically revising and adjusting policies to keep governance afloat,” GITFiC said in a statement issued by Chief Executive Officer Selasi Koffi Ackom on Thursday, March 3.
“Any proper, prudent, and competent manager of any economy will now appear to be uncaring and insensitive to its citizens.”
Find the full statement below: ON THE BENCHMARK VALUES – GITFiC’S POSITION
We support Government’s current review
Ghana’s economy is heavily import-driven. This is a known fact. Until recent times, Ghana had always recorded a trade deficit. A 30% reduction for all goods and a 10% reduction on vehicles is a decisive and satisfactory move to please all stakeholders. Such a pivotal decision by the Government should be considered by the General Trading Community (GTC) as an interim measure and subject to review in the soon future, depending on Economic-Trade Indicators within the Import and Logistics Sectors of Ghana’s Economy.
Considering the current global economic downturn as a result of the pandemic, economies around the world are critically revising and adjusting policies to keep governance afloat. Any proper, prudent, and competent manager of any economy will now appear to be uncaring and insensitive to its citizens. In Ghana, we have enjoyed free electricity, water, nose masks, food, tax holidays from the Ghana Revenue Authority, collateral-free monies distributed to business communities, free jabs et al. These were unplanned expenditures by Government however, as a matter of necessity; Government had to find the money to provide these amenities at no cost to the citizenry.
The call on the Government, by some few selected stakeholders to sustain or abolish the benchmark values, signifies a sense of dishonesty, relatively unfair, and counter mount to ‘p3seminkominya’. However, we, at the Ghana International Trade & Finance Conference (GITFiC), do not blame these few selected stakeholders. If you have some selected members within your membership paying an annual membership fee in USD, in figures of ten, you will have no choice but to vehemently advocate blindly on their behalf instead of appealing to them to comply with favorable Government policies in critical economic down-turn periods as now.
We believe that a little bit of demand and a little bit of supply compliment an economy. One cannot pretend to be an advocate for a Single Continental Open Market and be scared of the influx of commodities from the other side of the continent. That is obsolete. That is a facade and should not be entertained.
The Ghana International Trade and Conference (GITFiC) appeals for sanity within the trading space of Ghana’s economy and urges the business community to be accommodative and adjust to the government’s policies in these rough and tough periods. ‘’We are all involved in building our Motherland.’’ This should not depart from our day to day lives. Let’s trust in the system and be hopeful in our government.