The government has welcomed Standards and Poor’s (S&P) rating of the country, describing it as an affirmation of its hard work within the last 21 months of power.
“We consider it as feedback and affirmation of our submission that the economy of Ghana and its fundamentals are gradually getting better,” the Minister of Information-designate, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said yesterday at the launch of the fourth National Policy Summit (NPS) in Accra.
The international rating agency, Standard & Poor’s over the weekend upgraded Ghana’s credit rating from B- to B category following what it called “improved monetary policy effectiveness” and stable economic outlook.
According to S&P its upgrade of Ghana’s rating reflects their assessment that “Ghana’s monetary policy effectiveness has improved, albeit from a low base, and will support the credibility of the inflation-targeting framework over the period.”
It also cited the central bank’s recapitalisation of banks in Ghana would go a long way in strengthening the economy.
This, Mr Oppong-Nkrumah indicated that the various policies the government was putting in place to turn around the economy were yielding positive results.
He recounted that in 2003 when S&P first rated Ghana, the country achieved a B+ with a stable output and maintained the rating until December 2008 when the stable output was revised downwards to a negative position.
He said the country was downgraded to B with a stable output in September 2010 after which “the fortunes of the country took a downward [turn]” and the country was further downgrade to B- in October 2014.
Mr Oppong-Nkrumah averred that, the new rating was the first time in a decade that we have been upgraded to B.
Sovereign credit ratings, he said, were key evaluation principle for a country’s economic and political environment and that it gives investors an insight into the level of risk and potentials associated with the country.
The government, the minister-designate said would continue to pursue a strong monetary policy environment and continuously improve on the financial sector and fiscal position.
He said the government would also improve on the country’s revenue by disciplining ourselves on expenditure and ensure that our deficit did not get out of hand.
BY JONATHAN DONKOR AND ALLIA NOSHIE
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