2022 in Review: Highlights of Akufo-Addo's addresses to the nation

As president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has had many moments to address the country, either by way of a constitutional requirement or occasioned by general happenings in the country.

For example, on the subject of health, the president has addressed the nation several times in the last two years, taking the opportunity to update the country on how well or poorly his government has been tackling the fight against COVID-19.

As the year inches closer to its end, GhanaWeb takes a look at some of the major addresses the president has given in the year 2022, breaking them down into highlights of what he said.

This article, however, does not examine the president's general addresses given at events or other similar occasions such as conferences, seminars, and so on.

'There are brighter days ahead for Mother Ghana' - Akufo-Addo's 2022 New Year message

In his first official address to the nation in January 2022, by way of a photo flyer, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo reiterated his belief in Ghana and advanced the idea that brighter times lay ahead for the country.

"Wishing all Ghanaians a Happy New Year, I am a firm believer in our national potential. We have it in us to rise up and revive our fortunes. There are brighter days ahead for Mother Ghana," Akufo-Addo said.

Highlights of 2022 SoNA by Nana Akufo-Addo:

On March 30, 2022, just a day after the controversial Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy) was passed by the Parliament of Ghana, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo addressed the nation.

The State of the Nation Address (SoNA), which lasted more than an hour, touched on an array of topics and subjects.

The president spoke about issues such as the passage of the Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy); the qualification of Ghana for the 2022 World Cup, and issues surrounding coup scares in the country.

The highlights of that address are as follows:

-Akufo-Addo salutes the management, technical and playing teams of the Black Stars, who, against the odds, beat the Super Eagles of Nigeria in Abuja to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar

- Coronavirus: He said Ghana could not have been prepared for the catastrophe that hit it, adding that even the richest economies with the most sophisticated structures were unprepared

- He said his government decided to prioritize the saving of lives, after which they would get together to rebuild the economy. Nobody imagined the devastation would be so widespread and last so long

- This government remains alive to its responsibilities to the Ghanaian people

- Government undertaking the construction of 111 entities, which comprise standard 100-bed district hospitals for one hundred and one (101) districts without hospitals, with accommodation for doctors and nurses; six (6) new regional hospitals for each of the six (6) new regions; the rehabilitation of the Effia-Nkwanta Hospital in the Western Region; one (1) new regional hospital for the Western Region; and three (3) psychiatric hospitals for each of the three (3) zones of the country, i.e. North, Middle and Coastal

- The Agenda 111 Project will create some thirty-three thousand, nine hundred (33,900) jobs for construction workers, and, on completion, some thirty-four thousand, three hundred (34,300) jobs for health workers

- GH¢17.7 billion (or 4.6% of GDP) spent in containing the Coronavirus since 2020.

- Russia-Ukraine war has had a direct impact on lives in Ghana

- Government to start the construction of five (5) technical colleges in the next few months.

- Three technical institutes will be upgraded to tertiary status.

- The initial phase for the construction of nine (9) TVET campuses will commence next month (April) in Bosomtwe, Akyem Awisa, Boako, Kenyasi, Patuda, Dambai, Larabanga, Guabuliga and Tolibri.

- The Creative Arts Senior High School, in Kwadaso, whose construction is currently seventy percent (70%) complete, will serve as a beacon for many young and talented people, seeking a fulfilling career in this field.

- In 2021, Ghana recorded some six hundred and twenty-three thousand, five hundred and twenty-three (623,523) visitors, up from the three hundred and fifty-five thousand, one hundred and eight (355,108) visitors, the year before (2020), signifying a marked rebound of the country's tourism sector

- Successes of the Planting for Food and Jobs programme have transformed the lives of many farmers around the country.

- Tono Irrigation Dam has been fully rehabilitated, and is back to life and fully operational, and is serving the needs of many farmers in the areas around the dam.

- Age of 'football age' to come to an end as the Birth and Death Registry is to be digitized to allow for the synchronization of all details on people in the country.

- Through the 1D1F initiative, the made-in-Ghana label is being stamped on a wide range of products proudly manufactured in Ghana.

- Mr. Speaker, the cocoa industry has marked a lot of interesting and far-reaching achievements this past year, including producing one million, and forty-seven thousand, three hundred and eighty-five tonnes (1,047,385), the highest ever recorded in Ghana's history.

- Out of a total of two hundred and seventy-eight (278) 1D1F projects at various stages of implementation in all the sixteen (16) regions, one hundred and six (106) factories are currently operational, one hundred and forty-eight (148) are under construction, while twenty-four (24) projects are at mobilization stage

- Three other vehicle manufacturers, namely KIA, Hyundai and Renault, are also expected to commence commercial production this year.

- The police are bringing order to the roads and we all now know that the law is no respecter of persons or vehicle types.

Akufo-Addo's address to the nation following economic hardships:

On Sunday, October 30, 2022, the president addressed the nation on the measures the government was making to shore up the economy.

This was during a time many Ghanaians were complaining of economic hardships, also because nearly everything in the country had seen an astronomical increase in prices, including fuel, food, the rate of the Ghana cedi against the US dollar, among others.

However, after the address, not so many people were happy about a lot of the things the president said.

The following are three major areas many Ghanaians poured out on social media to address:

COVID-19:

The president has been criticised in the past for attributing many of the country's economic woes to the COVID-19 pandemic, which took over global economies, including Ghana, in 2020.

According to them, despite how huge the impact was, some countries were able to restore their economic confidence and boost their economies.

Expecting more from the president than mere rhetoric, the Ghanaians explained that they were disappointed when he reiterated it in this address.

While touting the strides the country has made, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo again made reference to the effects of COVID-19 on the economy.

"We could all see in real-time the devastation that was being wreaked on economies during the pandemic, but I doubt that anyone imagined the extent of the damage. Our economy, here in Ghana, like many, many others around the globe, was thrown into turmoil.

"When I said, at the height of the COVID pandemic, that we knew what to do to bring the economy back to life, but not how to bring people back to life, it was not said in jest. We had done it before, and we were on course to doing it again. Ghana's economy grew by a remarkable 5.4% in 2021, signifying a strong recovery from the 0.5% growth recorded the previous year due to the COVID-19 pandemic," he added.

But not many were happy with this.

Russia-Ukraine war:

The president also reiterated the impact of the Russia-Ukraine War on global economies.

According to him, despite the effect of COVID-19 on the economy, the economy was able to recover from the 0.5% growth to gain some 7%.

However, he added that this had been significantly impacted by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in the first quarter of the year.

He stressed that this had aggravated the effects of COVID-19 and plunged the global economy into even greater turmoil from which it has not yet recovered.

'Sika mpɛ dede':

The biggest talking point for most Ghanaians was the above phrase used by the president in his address.

While trying to dissuade speculators from speaking badly and projecting doom for the Ghanaian cedi amid its rapid depreciation against the dollar, the president quoted a French saying.

He said: "Fellow Ghanaians, as the French would say, l'argent n'aime pas le bruit, to wit, money does not like noise, sika mpɛ dede."

"Where there is chaos, where there is noise, where there is unrest, you will not find money. If you talk down your money, it will go down. If you allow some unidentifiable person to talk down your money, it will go down," he stressed.

To this, many netizens responded, questioning why the president was seemingly blaming speculators rather than telling Ghanaians what was accounting for the fall of the cedi and suggesting viable solutions to revive it.

AE/BOG