Stop hoarding new Ghana coins - BoG

Accra, Jan 28, GNA - Dr Paul Acquah, Governor of Bank of Ghana on Monday said the seemingly shortage of coins in the system for daily transaction was due to hoarding by the public. Speaking at the first Monetary Policy Meeting (MPC) for the year, he said: "The transition to a full adoption of the use of coins has not been smooth as expected."

The Governor said reports reaching the BoG indicated that some members of the public were hoarding the coins either in safes such as "pots" at homes and preferred carrying the notes for day to day transactions.

Dr Acquah said before the end of 2007, the bank injected sufficient quantities of the coins into the system but expressed concern that its usage by the pubic was still at a slow pace. He said the Bank was running programmes such as commercials to intensify education on the use of the coins and expressed the hope that very soon the rate of adjustment would improve. Dr Acquah said at present, the old notes and coins had been virtually withdrawn from circulation and that the market was responding to the change.

There has been a public outcry in recent times that coins in circulation were not enough and that commercial drivers and retailers were rounding up rates and prices to their advantage. Media reports have indicated that commercial drivers at most lorry stations were charging 25Gp instead of 22Gp due to shortage of 1Gp coins in the system.