2012 Budget… “Na Double-Double”

As Tremendous GDP Growth & Others Place Ghana On A Higher Pedestal

News Desk Report

The package of government monetary policy projections presented on Wednesday, November 16th, 2011, will forever leave an indelible mark in the minds of Ghanaians, despite strenuous efforts by the Minority NPP to sidetrack the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor during his delivery of the 2012 budget statement.

Political pundits believe that the structure of the 2012 budget as presented in a statement to Parliament, Wednesday, has been a masterpiece ever worked out, as it gives solid evidence of accomplishment within relatively short period in office by government as well as presents hope of light to the Ghanaian economy.
These trust, the budget will remain very special and, as a root on which the national economy sprouts evolves; a departure from promissory situations as pertained in recent political history of Ghana, as evidenced in the successes chalked by the current administration and its projections for the year ahead.
Unveiling the 2012 budget and economic policies of the Atta Mills-led National Democratic Congress (NDC) government, dubbed “Infrastructure Development for Accelerated Growth and Job Creation”, the Finance Minister Kwabena Duffuor re-echoed the government commitment of building a “Better Ghana”, saying the NDC’s manifesto promises were anchored on transparent and accountable governance, a strong economy for real jobs, that aims at investing in people, and expanding infrastructure.
Recounting the gains made by government so far, Hon. Duffuor, one time the Governor of Ghana’s Central Bank – Bank of Ghana, with much display of confidence, and without mincing words indicated that, the three budget statements and economic policies presented so far to parliament since the NDC took over the reigns of government, have significantly improved the living standard of Ghanaians.
Buttressing this point, the Minister stated that, the significant growth in real GDP from 4.0 percent in 2009, to 7.7 percent in 2010 and 13.6 percent in 2011, has made Ghana one of the fastest growing economies in the world, which is unprecedented in the history of this country.
According to him, under the able leadership of His Excellency Professor John Evans Atta Mills, coupled with hard work of the nation’s Cocoa farmers and other stakeholders, Ghana has now attainted the 1.0 million metric tons of cocoa production for the first time in the nation’s history ahead of the 2012 scheduled.
Explaining further as to why the Atta Mills- led NDC administration’s achievement and successes merit the accolade, “double-double” , Dr. Duffuor stated that at the end of 2008, the fiscal deficit on cash basis which was 8.5 percent of GDP (14.5 percent of GDP-old series), at the end of September 2011, was significantly reduced to 2.0 percent of the GDP.
With regards to the successes chalked in fighting inflation to its barest minimum by the Atta Mills’s government, the Minister revealed that inflation which was 18.1 percent at the end of 2008 now stands at 8.40 percent in September, 2011.
This single digit inflation according to him is real, and has been sustained for the longest period in the economic history of the nation - from June 2010 to date.
Interest rates which has become an albatross on the neck of past governments particularly that of the Kufuor administration as captured in the 2012 budget statement and economic policy of the current administration, have witnessed continuous declined since 2009, evidenced by the significant reduction in the yield of the 91-day money market instrument from 26.67 percent in 2008 to 9.1 percent in September 2011, making it the lowest recorded money marker rate in decades.
Being the highest ever recorded in the nation’s history, Gross International Reserves of US$4.98 billion recorded in October 2011 exceeded 3.0 months of import cover of goods and services, compared to reserves of US$2.0 billion at the end of December 2008, under ex-President John Agyekum Kufuor and his NPP, which could barely cover 2 months of imports.
Holding strongly to the government’s Better Ghana agenda commitment, Ghana for the first time since the commencement of the West Africa Monetary Zone (WAMZ) programme, has met all the four primary convergence criteria as at the end of June 2011; and thus tremendous progress was made in improving the well-being of the vulnerable, through social interventions such as removal of Schools under Trees, provision of free uniforms and text books to pupils, up-scaling of the school feeding programme and the Local Enterprise and Skills Development Porgramme (LESDEP).
Summerising the successes chalked by the Atta Mills administration, the confident and astute Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, stated that pledges made by the NDC to build a Better Ghana was not a hoax as captured in the party’s manifesto.
According to him, the NDC government pledged to implement policies and programmes that would expand infrastructure, create jobs and provide the needed social service for the benefit of all Ghanaians and the very solid socio-economic policies pursued with commitment, have today resulted in the restoration of fiscal consolidation and macroeconomic stability of the country; leading to achieving the highest real GDP growth rate ever to be recorded in the annals of Mother Ghana’s history.
It is, therefore, explicit as regards the massive economic gains made so far by the Atta Mills-led NDC government and projections made for the coming year, aimed at Accelerating Growth and Job Creation as well as Infrastructural Development, might have informed their decision to adopt the slogan “Na Double-Double” in anticipation of their victory next year as Ghanaians go to polls to elect their leader .