Former Chief Executive of Unilever Ghana, and now Board Chairman of Standard Chartered Bank Ghana, Dr. Ishmael Yamson has tasked government to pursue a ‘Ghana Beyond Debt’ agenda in addition to the ‘Ghana Beyond Aid’ project.
According to him, Ghana’s growing debt is one of the biggest risks that could cripple the economy, hence there must be a national agenda on drastically reducing it.
Ghana’ public debt stock currently stands at 138.8 billion cedis.
Speaking to journalists after chairing a forum organized by the American Chamber of Commerce Ghana, Dr. Yamson observed that the country’s debt level is alarming.
He pointed out that successive governments have not done enough to control the debt levels, but rather added more to it.
“If we have any one single problem that has bedeviled this country for many years, it is debt. Governments over governments have borrowed and over borrowed and the country have come under very severe fiscal stress because we have to find the money to not only service the debt but also pay the interest,” he lamented.
He stated that there must be pragmatic measures to prevent the debt from reaching unsustainable levels
Dr. Yamson maintained that government should invest in the manufacturing sub-sector since it is one of the critical areas that can help reverse the trend.
“I want to see a situation where we can build the kind of economy which is robust enough which is driven by manufacturing and agriculture and services. Which will generate enough money so that government can save and invest, so that the private sector can have access to funds and invest,” he recommended.
He added that such a move will also fulfil government’s agenda of creating jobs for Ghanaians.
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By: Lawrence Segbefia/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana
