Former President John Dramani Mahama says the Nana Addo led government has failed the private sector and the entire Ghanaian populace in general.
To him, the introduction of several taxes and the bad state of the country’s economy is creating an unfavorable business environment for private businesses and industries to thrive.
Speaking at the 7th Ghana CEO Summit on Monday, Mr. Mahama revealed that the incidence of high import and export duties, the depreciation of the local currency, high taxes, and lack of access to credit among others have negatively affected the private sector of Ghana.
‘The government has failed the private sector to play its part of providing a conducive environment for the progress of the private industries and businesses’, he said.
Mr. Mahama noted that in order to address this economic crisis and achieve stability, there is a need for a collaborative effort between the government and all stakeholders.
He said Government, citizens, business leaders, researchers, and civil society must visibly work together to achieve stability, tame inflation, and secure sustainable socioeconomic growth for job creation.
He described the theme for the 7th Ghana CEO Summit: Economic Sovereignty, as apt to stop the hemorrhaging of both financial and human resources.
He also called for the promotion of local industries and a reduction in the growth rate of importation.
“Complaints I hear from the business community today are about the lack of access to credit, high inflation, high taxes, high import and export duties and levies, high-handed regulatory environment, depreciating local currency, harassment by the GRA, deteriorating infrastructure, among others,” Mr. Mahama emphasized.
Subsequently, the former President revealed that unemployment has worsened to historic proportions as statistics from the various sectors are neither uplifting nor comforting.
“For those of you in the agricultural sector, the 2.7% growth rate posted in 2016 has become 0.7% in 2022. The manufacturing sector grew at 7.9% in 2016 and today is down to 4.5% in 2022. The construction sector, which was leading in growth from 8.4% in 2016, is currently barely doing 4.2% in 2022. These are challenges that require a comprehensive and multifaceted approach to tackle effectively”, he said.
He, therefore, urged the Ghanaian populace to work together to reverse and restore indigenous Ghanaian investment in the finance and banking sector by creating a tiered banking system to finance different segments of the business market.
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Source: Eric Sekyi/ATLFMNEWS
