The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has maintained that the latest surrender and repatriation of export receipts will spur the country’s socio-economic transformation agenda.
The move, it explained is targeted at building an automation platform for export documentation to end the silos monitoring by various government agencies.
In addition, it will allow the BoG to monitor and properly document all exports of goods and services to make sure proceeds are repatriated to Ghana.
Speaking at a stakeholders forum on the implementation of the monitoring software by GCNET, the First Deputy Governor of the BoG, Millison Narh explained that the move will help accumulate adequate reserves to support the economic development of the country.
“Due to the absence of coordinated effects in monitoring by these government agencies, millions of export revenues that accrue to Ghana are being locked up in western economies,” he said.
Mr. Narh impressed on all stakeholders in the export industry to help government improve its balance of payment accounts, by working to retain foreign reserves in the country.
“The time has come for all stakeholders in the export sector to ensure that every commodity that leaves the shores of Ghana is accounted for,” he said.
“This is the only way we can curb the perennial shortage of foreign exchange with its attendant depreciation of the Ghana cedi, and accumulate adequate reserves,” he added.
The central bank recently announced that it will roll out a new directive by July 1, to compel all exporters, except those with Retention Agreements to repatriate in full all their export receipts to their foreign exchange accounts (FEA) with local banks in Ghana to be converted into cedis on need basis.
The measure, Citi Business News gathered is to deepen the foreign exchange markets and promote greater transparency in the determination of the exchange rate.
Meanwhile, effective July 1, 2016 any exporter who fails to repatriate export proceeds in full as prescribed under the new regulation shall be in violation of the Rules.
Offenders may be deemed to have committed an offence under Section 15 (4) of the Foreign Exchange Act, 2006 and liable on conviction to sanctions as prescribed by a court.
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By:Norvan Acquah – Hayford/citibusinessnews.news/Ghana