Ladies and Gentlemen,
1. Three months ago, I was elected as leader and flagbearer of
the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to lead the party into the 2024
Elections. I am eternally grateful to His Excellency the
President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, for giving me the
opportunity to serve as Vice-President.
2. Just 11 days ago, the party also completed its election- of
parliamentary candidates for 2024 elections. Let me use this
opportunity to also appreciate the leadership and grassroots
of our beloved party, the NPP, for the seamless organization of
the Parliamentary Primaries following on the equally
successful Presidential contest.
3. I believe the time has now come for me to speak to you, the
good people of Ghana, about my candidature, what we have
experienced as a nation, my vision and priorities, and why I
believe I am the best candidate for the presidency of this
country in the 2024 Presidential election.
4. I recognize that submitting myself to your service, the
electorate, to vote for me as President, is no different from
interviewing for a job. One needs to tell a prospective
employer what he has accomplished in his previous job, and
how he can successfully deliver in the new position he is
seeking. Which is what I seek to do in this speech. Even
though tonight is about sharing my vision and policy priorities
with you, I crave your indulgence to broadly set up the context.
I will first talk about the record of our government and my
contribution as Vice President, before laying out my vision.
So I ask for your patience.
5. Ladies and Gentlemen, when we assumed office in 2017, we
were confronted with an economy with declining economic
growth along with several problems and challenges. A graphic
description of the state of the economy at the time was
provided by the former President and my main opponent for
the 2024 presidential election, who announced to the nation
when he was President that all the meat was finished and the
economy was left with bones. Notwithstanding the difficult
economy we inherited, we had to get on with it and start to fix
the problems.
6. We started with a clear, decisive and deliberate program to,
among other things, stabilize the economy, fix dumsor, fix the
NHIS, fix the roads, clear the arrears, make education free and
accessible, significantly enhance social protection for the
vulnerable in society, industrialize our economy, tackle youth
unemployment and empower farmers. Between 2017-19 all
the key economic indicators such as economic growth,
agricultural growth, industry growth inflation, interest rates,
fiscal deficit, exchange rate depreciation, and trade balance
were moving in the right direction.
7. However, between 2020 and 2022, we experienced severe
challenges, triggered by the pandemic which brought the world
and our country to a thundering halt. We may be tired of
hearing it but there is no avoiding the fact that the COVID-19
pandemic, and the Russia-Ukraine war, resulted in the greatest
economic depression in the world since the 1930s, with most
countries recording negative GDP growth. The severity,
especially of the Pandemic, was captured in the words of the
IMF Managing Director then thus:
“this is a crisis like no other…Pandemics don’t respect borders,
neither do the economic shocks they cause. The outlook is dire.
We expect global economic activity to decline on a scale we have
not seen since the Great Depression.”
8. Supply chain disruptions and the rising price of oil resulted in
major increases in the prices of fuel, freight and food across
the globe.
9. I believe it is worth pointing out that in addition to the external
factors, there were two major items of expenditure that are
critical to understanding the difficult economic situation we
have faced. And these are, the banking sector cleanup and the
energy sector excess capacity payments. The three items
(including Covid-19 expenditure) cumulatively amounted to
GHC50.1 billion and this was financed from borrowing.
10. The fiscal deficit which was reduced from 8.4% in 2016 to
4.1% by 2019 increased to 10.8% in 2020 (as a result of
revenue declines in the midst of increasing expenditiures). In
addition, our debt became unsustainable. Along with many
emerging market economies, Ghana lost access to
international capital market financing. This resulted in a
balance of payments crisis as Ghana had to continue to
honour its debt service obligations, energy payments and the
import bill. We faced a serious global and domestic economic
crisis.
11. There were many who predicted that we were going to end
up like the situation in Sri Lanka with fuel shortages, food
shortages, inability to pay workers, dumsor, anarchy and
chaos. Indeed, Ghanaians were hit by rising food prices,
increased exchange rate depreciation, rising fuel prices, rising
transport fares. Bond holders also saw a sharp decline in their
net worth following the debt restructuring program. We faced
very challenging times. But with calm leadership and the
support and understanding of the good people of Ghana, we
weathered the storm. The government had to seek IMF
support to stabilize our economy and restore fiscal and debt
sustainability over the next three years.
12. I must salute and give particular recognition to the Bank
of Ghana, which has come under unfair criticism for taking the
necessary measures which helped pull the economy back from
the brink. The central bank provided needed financing to the
Government at that critical moment. What the Bank of Ghana
did was very responsible, in putting the interest of the good
citizens of Ghana first.
13. The data available shows that the financing provided to
Government by the Bank of Ghana was temporary. The Bank
of Ghana has provided zero financing to Government in five
out of the last seven years (2017, 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2023).
The Bank of Ghana financing to government in the COVID-19
year of 2020 and liquidity crisis year of 2022 was because of
a domestic and global crisis (underperforming domestic
revenue and no access to international capital markets).
Ladies and Gentlemen,
14. The good news is that the data shows that the economy is
recovering from the crisis we faced. Inflation has declined from
54% in January to 23% in December 2023. Economic growth
is rebounding, spending is under control with the fiscal deficit
as a percentage of GDP has declined from 10.8% in 2020 to
4.2% in 2023. The debt to GDP ratio, after increasing from
61.2% in 2019 to 76.6% in 2021 has declined to 66.4% in
2023. And exchange rate depreciation has also slowed down
sharply since February 2023, Whereas the exchange rate
depreciated by 30% in 2022, between February and December
2023, it only depreciated by 9%.
15. What is remarkable is that notwithstanding the domestic
and global crisis that we have experienced between 2020 and
2022, the economic performance as measured by the key
economic indicators (such as GDP growth, Agricultural
growth, industry growth, Trade Balance, Exchange rate
depreciation, lending rates, Gross international reserves and
jobs) is better than that of the 2013-2016 period when there
was no global crisis. Let me give some examples:
GDP Growth.
16. On GDP growth, it is worth noting that between 2013-
2016, Ghana’s GDP growth averaged 3.9%. During our first
term (2017-2020) GDP growth increased to an average of
5.3%. Following COVID-19 and the global slowdown, Ghana’s
GDP growth declined to an average of 4.9% between 2017 and
2022. What is remarkable about this performance is that
notwithstanding the global economic crisis from COVI-19 and
the Russia-Ukraine war, economic growth under our government is still stronger on average than under the 2013- 2016 era preceding our coming into office.
Agricultural Growth
17. The stronger GDP growth performance in the 2017-2022
period is underpinned by a strong agricultural GDP growth
which increased from an average of 2.9% between 2013-2016
to an average of 6% (double) between 2017 and 2022. We have
made a lot of progress in agriculture even though there is more
to be done. Rice imports for example have declined by 45%
(from 805,000MT to 440,000MT) between 2021 and 2023! The
goal is to be a net exporter of rice by 2028. It is clear that some
of our policy interventions such as planting for food and jobs
have born fruits.
Industry
18. Industrial GDP growth also followed a similar trend. After
averaging 3.3% between 2013 and 2016, industrial growth
increased to an average of 7.5% between 2017 and 2020.
Industrial Growth however declined after the global crisis with
a recorded average growth rate of 5% between 2017 and 2022.
Again, what is remarkable about this performance is that
notwithstanding the global economic crisis from COVI-19 and
the Russia-Ukraine war, industrial growth under our
government is still stronger on average than under the 2013-
2016 era. Our programs and policies such as the revival of
Anglogold Ashanti (Obuasi mine), revival of Ghana Publishing
Company, revival of Ghanapost, revival of State Housing
Corporation, revival of State Transport Corporation, IDIF, and
the attraction of international automobile companies to
Ghana, amongst others have clearly yielded positive results.
The Ministry of Trade reports that under IDIF, 169 factories
are currently in operation and 152 factories are under
construction. 211 out of the total of 321 (66%) are new
projects whist 110 companies are existing projects being
supported.
Trade Balance
19. Ghana’s trade balance (the difference between exports and
imports) prior to 2017 was in persistent deficit (for best part
of 30 years!). Between 2013 and 2016 the trade deficit
averaged $2.5 billion. The trade balance improved
significantly to a surplus that averaged $1.8 billion between
2017 and 2020. Notwithstanding the global crisis, Ghana has
continued to record a trade surplus which has averaged $1.9
billion between 2017 and 2022, a better performance than in
the 2013-2016 period when there was no global crisis. This is
evidence that we have indeed increased productivity and
exports relative to imports.
Gross International Reserves
20. Ghana’s gross international reserves also increased from
an average of $5.8 billion in the 2013-2016 period to an average
of $7.9 billion between 2017 and 2022.
Exchange Rate
21. On the performance of the cedi exchange rate, it is
interesting to note that between 2013 and 2016 the cedi
depreciated by an average of 17.7%. Between 2017 and 2020
there was a significant decline in the cedi depreciation to an
average of 7.5%. The average cedi depreciation further declined
to 6.8% between 2017 and 2021. However, following the 30%
depreciation of the cedi in 2022, the average cedi depreciation
between 2017 and 2022 is 10.75%. So again, notwithstanding
the domestic and global economic crisis, the depreciation of the
cedi under our government is lower than what we inherited from
the 2013-2016 period.
Interest Rates
22. In the area of Bank lending rates, the story is the same.
Bank lending rates averaged 27.5% between 2013 and 2016.
During our first term, average bank lending rates declined to
23.7%. Following the global and domestic crisis, bank lending
rates increased slightly to an average of 25% between 2017
and 2022. Even though bank lending rates increased to 35%
in 2022, on average interest rates have been lower in the
2017-2022 period.
JOBS
23. What is probably the most remarkable development in
terms of the economy is that our government has created
2.1million jobs between 2017 and 2022 notwithstanding the
global economic crisis. The public sector recruited 1.2 million
people while the private sector created 975,000 jobs (per SSNIT
data) . We recruited 100,000 more health workers, 100,000
more teachers, more than doubled the fire service personnel,
etc. Our government has quite clearly created more jobs in a
seven year period than any government. This is truly
remarkable under the circumstances even though we still have
to create more jobs.
24. Clearly notwithstanding the economic crisis, this
government has been able to steer the ship of the nation away
from catastrophe. In the face of the crisis, the overall
performance of the economy in areas such as GDP Growth,
agricultural growth, industrial growth, trade balance, gross
international reserves and job creation demonstrated
resilience.
25. Available data also shows that notwithstanding the
challenging economy we inherited, and the global economic
crisis that ensued, government has chalked a large number
of achievements across the country. Due to time constraints
I will not be able to enumerate all these achievements.
However, government will soon outdoor our Performance
Tracker which details all of our achievements in every sector
and every district in Ghana. I will just name a few:
26. Undertaken a major roads construction and rehabilitation
program across the country (over 11,674 Km according to the
Ministry of roads and highways). I am not aware of any
government that has done as much in the roads sector since
independence.
27. We have initiated or overseen the
construction/rehabilitation of more railways than any other
government since 1992 ( Achimota-Nsawam, Accra-Tema,
Kojokrom-Tarkwa, Kojokrom – Manso, Tema-Mpakadan)
28. We have extended more rural telephony network than
any other government since 1992 (increasing from 78 sites to
1008 sites).
29. Constructed more public libraries than any other
government since 1992. We have increased the total number
of public libraries from 61 in 2017 to 115 by 2023.
30. We have established 702 cyberlabs in public schools and 81 communities since 2017.
31. Constructed more fish landing sites than any other
government since 1992(Axim, Dixcove, Moree, Mumford,
Winneba, Senya Breku, Gomoa Fetteh, Teshie, Keta, Osu,
Ekumfi, Mfantseman).
32. We have constructed two major fishing harbours in
Elmina and James Town (almost complete).
33. We have completed 18 district hospitals, two regional
hospitals, 20 polyclinics, and 75 CHPS compounds. We are also
in the process of building more district hospitals than any other
government since independence under Agenda 111.
34. We have constructed more sanitation facilities than any
other government since 1992. As a result, we have increased
the proportion of the population with access to toilet facilities
from 33% in 2016 to 59% in 2022. Also, 5,400 communities
have also been declared open-defecation free since 2017.
35. Constructed more sports facilities than any other
government since 1992. We have completed six new multipurpose sports stadiums, and four on-going in each of the ten old regions, completed the University of Ghana Stadium in Legon, built multi-sports facilities at Borteyman for the African
Games, as well as increased public astro turf in Ghana from 3
in 2016 to over 150 now, with many on-going.
36. Provided more vehicles and equipment (including boats
and helicopters) to the security services than any other
government since 1992 and we will continue to prioritize
national security going forward.
37. We have constructed more infrastructure and
implemented more development policies in the zongo
communities than any other government since 1992. The Zongo
Development Fund has completed over 200 infrastructure
projects.
38. Abolished the 3-month arrears policy for teachers
39. Constructed more courts and accommodation for the
judiciary than any other government since 1992. Constructing 120 courts (80 completed) and 150 bungalows for the judiciary.
40. Completed 1,609 projects by the development authorities.
41. Kept the lights on after four years of dumsor by paying $1
billion a year in excess capacity charges.
42. Restored teacher training allowances that were cancelled.
43. Restored Nursing training allowances that were cancelled.
44. To make sure our education sector is not left out of the
digital revolution, we are providing free Wifi to our senior high
schools (710), 46 Colleges of Education, 260 district education
offices, and 13 public universities.
45. Increased Scholarships beneficiaries by 70%.
46. Extended NHIS coverage to childhood cancers.
47. Extended NHIS coverage to Hydroxyurea for sickle cell
patients.
48. Saved the deposits of 4.6 million bank depositors by saving
the banking system from collapse.
49. Doubled the capitation grant.
50. Provided free water to all households for a whole year
during COVID-19.
51. We provided free electricity to life line consumers and a
50% discount to other consumers for a whole year during
COVID-19.
52. It is important to note that between 2009 and 2016, the
average annual increase in end user electricity tariffs was 50%
per year! Between 2017 and 2023 on the other hand, the
average annual increase was 11.1%. This is the lowest annual
average increase in electricity tariffs for any government since
1992.
53. We abolished or reduced 21 separate taxes in our first
term (before the global crisis).
54. We also reduced import duties by 50% between 2019 and
2021 even though traders did not reduce prices for consumers
as they promised to do.
55. Introduced the National Rental Assistance Scheme to
assist people with rent advance and 1,393 people have benefited
so far.
56. Increased the share of the DACF to persons with
disabilities by 50%.
57. Reduced infant mortality per 1000 live births from 37.9 in
2016 to 32.6 in 2022.
58. We have implemented Free TVET and
59. We have also implemented Free SHS with an increase in
enrollment from 800,000 in 2016 to 1.4 million by 2022. The
year 2023 has recorded the highest ever level of enrollment in
SHS of around 500,000 students. The performance of the
students at WASSCE is also the best since 2015 and we have
also achieved gender parity.
DIGITAL GHANA
Ladies and Gentlemen,
60. We were elected into office in December 2016 to solve
many of the systemic problems and challenges that our citizens
were facing and which we had highlighted in our manifesto (e.g.
no unique identity, no property address system, fake birth
certificates, etc). We had lived with many of these problems
since independence.
61. For me, to lead is to solve. Indeed, all my adult life, my
biggest motivation is about finding solutions; solutions that
improve lives; solutions that make public services efficient and
accessible; solutions that make society progress; solutions that
protect the public purse; solutions that make our businesses
competitive. I derive my greatest satisfaction from solving
problems and I have done so whenever I am given the
opportunity and will do more if I am given the mandate to do so.
62. I had long held the view that many of these problems facing
the economy could be resolved through digitalization. In fact in
my 2010 book on Monetary Policy and Financial Sector Reform
in Africa, I proposed digitalization amongst others as the way
forward for African countries.
63. So when we assumed office in 2017, as Vice-President, I
made the decision, with the blessings and support of the
President, to focus on the critical but underdeveloped systems
that would expand the economy, improve systems, and create
jobs through digitalization. Therefore, as the Minister for
Finance oversees the budget (fiscal policy) and the Governor of
the central bank also focused on monetary and exchange rate
policy, I focused on the complementary data and systems
improvement that would ensure the ease of doing business and
change the fundamentals of the economy, making it more
dynamic and responsive to modern trends, and the
management of it more scientific and efficient.
64. I was, thankfully, appointed as Chairman of the Economic
Management Team (EMT). As a sub-committee to Cabinet, we
do not have any decision-making powers, but I am very proud
of the quality of advice we have been providing over the years to
Cabinet.
65. As Vice-President, I was asked by the President to assist in
solving some of the problems that were inhibiting the
transformation of Ghana’s economy. My approach was to help
formalize the economy through digitalization as stated in our
2016 manifesto. This is why my office has had oversight
responsibility for many of the government’s digitalization
projects. We can only build a vibrant modern nation if we have
strong systems and institutions that work. Very soon, Artificial
Intelligence (AI) will transform the world, how are we preparing
Ghana for this new phenomenon? I will now come to how we are
using digitalization to transform the economy and preparing our
society to be competitive as Africa is busily becoming the largest
single market in the world, with its 1.4 billion people.
ADDRESSING THE ISSUE OF UNIQUE IDENTITY
66. A major problem that we had as a country was the absence
of a unique identity for citizens and residents. With oversight
from my office, the National Identification Authority moved
quickly with the issuance of biometric national ID cards (The
Ghanacard) to the population. The Ghanacard project was
initiated by President Kufuor. So far, some 17 million people
have been enrolled on the Ghanacard by the NIA. Between
2007 and 2016, only 900,000 cards were issued! With the
Ghanacard, the identity of people (even dead people) can be
established using their fingerprints. With the Ghanacard,
every Ghanaian, regardless of location or status, whether rich
or poor, now can be officially registered and recognized as a
Ghanaian. Before this, it was possible for someone to be born,
live and die in Ghana without ever being registered.
67. Identity fraud, age cheating, football age, people cheating
on their retirement age, fake birth certificates and fake
passports, etc. will no longer be possible with the Ghanacard.
Today, because your bank account or SIM card is linked with
your Ghanacard, people cannot borrow money from a bank
and disappear and appear with a new name as used to
happen leading to higher interest rates. The Ghanacard can
also be used to travel from abroad into Ghana across 44,000
airports in the world. The Ghanacard is the major element in
many of the digitalization initiatives to follow. That is why its
successful implementation has been so important to me.
A PROPERTY ADDRESS SYSTEM FOR GHANA
68. To solve the problem of a lack of a working address system
in Ghana, with oversight from my office, we have leveraged on
GPS technology to implement a digital address system for
Ghana capturing every square inch of land. Today, every
property in Ghana has a unique digital address along with
street names and house numbers. Finding directions to any
location is now very easy.
PROMOTING FINANCIAL INCLUSION
69. Ladies and Gentlemen, we faced a major problem of very
few people having access to and financial services. To solve
this problem, I championed the implementation of Mobile
money interoperability (MMI). MMI has made it possible to
transfer money seamlessly across different mobile money
providers and between bank accounts and mobile wallets.
Today, because of mobile money interoperability (MMI), you
can transfer money from a customer of one mobile money
service provider to a customer of a different mobile money
service provider and also make payments from your mobile
money account into any bank account and you can receive
payments from any bank account into your mobile money
account. This can be done 24 hours a day!
70. Apart from achieving financial inclusion, MMI has also
significantly promoted a cashless culture, especially by our
market women and the business community, thus reducing
robberies and attacks of market women and business folks
on our highways. Robbers used to attack vehicles carrying
traders, knowing they were carrying cash, but now, many
traders don’t carry cash, because they keep their monies on
their mobile wallets for seamless transactions wherever they
are.
71. You can also receive remittances from abroad directly onto
your mobile phone without the need to go to a bank or
Western Union Money Transfer. Because the mobile money
account performs just like a bank account, as a result of MMI,
over 90% of Ghanaian adults have mobile money accounts
that function like bank accounts. We have basically solved
the problem of financial exclusion in Ghana. The State of
Inclusive Instant Payment Report has ranked Ghana as
number one in Africa in terms of access to financial inclusion!
Ghana has 100% access to financial inclusion! Today because
of digitalization anyone can do banking and digital financial
transactions 24 hours a day!
72. The data shows that at the end of 2016, total cumulative
value of mobile money transactions was GHC 78.5 billion.
Following MMI, the total cumulative value of mobile money
transactions has increased to over GHC 1.9 trillion at the end
of 2023. Therefore, between 2016 and 2023, following MMI,
momo transactions have increased by 2,335%! (a 23-fold
increase!). This is why Ghana continues to be the fastest
growing mobile money market in Africa.
73.The digital payments infrastructure is boosting e-commerce
in Ghana. Businesses are booming over Instagram, Facebook,
Twitter, etc. Many people who cannot afford to rent or build
shops are able to do business on the internet at little cost with
deliveries helped by digital address and payments using
mobile money interoperability. This can be done 24 hours a
day! Ghana is currently ranked number 6 in Africa in terms
of e-commerce after Mauritius, Nigeria, South Africa, Tunisia
and Morocco according to UNCTAD.
ADDRESSING EFFICIENT DELIVERY AND CORRUPTION IN THE
PUBLIC SERVICE
74. Our approach to improving the delivery of public services
is to minimize human contact as much as possible. Therefore,
we embarked on an aggressive digitalization of the processes
of service delivery across many public institutions with
coordination from my office:
75. Digitalization of the passport office: We digitalized the
passport office with oversight from my office. With
digitization, the average turnaround time for the acquisition
of passports has been significantly reduced and today you can
apply for your passport online from home 24 hours a day. The
digitization of the passport application process has resulted
in a major increase in the number of passports processed
annually as well as the revenue yield to the passport office. In
2018, a total of 346,911 passports were issued with a revenue
of GHC11.8 million. By 2023, the passport office issued
751,761 passports with a revenue of GHC94.0 million. The
ultimate objective is to eradicate human interface in all
phases of the passport application process, to give true
meaning to the online filling and processing of forms. I will
come back to this shortly when I get to my vision and
priorities.
76.Digitalization of the ports- Paperless Ports: Previously, the
bureaucracy in the clearing of goods at Ghana’s ports involved
a lot of paperwork and used to be largely manual. This caused
delays, corruption, inefficiencies, frustration and loss of
revenue to government. Many citizens who had cleared goods
at the country’s ports had horror stories about their
experiences at the ports. With oversight from my office, the
introduction of a paperless port system has reduced the
layers and simplified the process, reduced the time needed to
clear goods and the avenues for corruption and increased
efficiencies and revenue mobilization at the ports.
77. Digitalization of the DVLA: The DVLA offers two
traditional services: Driver Licensing and Vehicle Registration
related services. These services have been fully digitized.
78. Motor Insurance Database: My office also worked with
the National Insurance Commission to implement the Motor
Insurance Database. The objective of the introduction of the
Motor Insurance Database is to provide more safeguards for
the millions of Ghanaians who travel by road by ensuring
vehicles are insured. It also curbs the menace of vehicles with
fake motor insurance stickers plying our roads, thus
endangering lives and property.
79. With the digitalization of motor insurance in Ghana,
Members of the public can also self-check the authenticity of
their insurance policy by dialing a USSD code *920*57# and
follow the instructions thereafter to know the insurance
status of the vehicle 24 hours a day! Today you can also apply
for insurance for your vehicle on your mobile phone and
receive your insurance sticker electronically 24 hours a day!
Births and Deaths Digitalization:
80. With oversight from my office, we have digitized the births
and deaths registry and we have just completed the
integration of the births and deaths registry database with
the databases of the Ghana Health Service and the National
Identification Authority, so that the record of births and
deaths would be consistent across all these databases.
81. Starting in this first quarter of 2024 (in fact I will launch
this in a few weeks), new born children will be given a
Ghanacard number but the actual card will be issued when
the child is after age six when his or her the biometrics are
fully formed.
82. Scholarship Secretariat Applications:
In the past, candidates applying for scholarship usually had to
travel from all parts of Ghana to Accra to take part in the
application process. This caused a great deal of inconvenience
for applicants seeking government sponsorships. The manual
processes of the Scholarship Secretariat resulted in an
inefficient administration of scholarships in the country.
83. With the digitalization of the scholarship secretariat,
candidates can now apply for scholarship from the comfort of
their homes 24 hours a day, take an aptitude test and be
interviewed in their own districts.
Ghana.Gov Platform:
84. To make it easy to access government services, I led the
initiative to establish the Ghana.Gov platform which was
implemented with oversight from my office. The Ghana.gov
portal is a one-stop shop for accessing government services.
So far, out of 1,516 of Ministries, Departments and Agencies
targeted, we have onboarded 1,503 on to the Ghana.Gov
platform for e-government services (99% of MMDAs have been
onboarded!). All payments made on the Ghana.Gov platform
go directly into the government accounts ensuring
transparency. Since 2020, a total of GHC 201 billion has been
collected for Government on the platform.
85. For services onboarded and receiving payments, you
should be able to apply for and obtain any government service
online through the Ghana.Gov platform 24 hours a day!.
Digitization has therefore dealt a severe blow to corruption
involved in the collection of payments by different institutions
for government. The progress Ghana has made in the
provision of e-government services is remarkable. According
to the UNDP 2022 E-Governance index, Ghana is ranked
Number one in West Africa and Number four in the whole of
Africa in terms of E-Governance and ahead of countries such
as Rwanda, Botswana, Cote d’Ïvoire, Senegal, Kenya and
Uganda.
86. With oversight from my office, digitalization at the
Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), has allowed buying
electricity credit on your mobile phone through the Mobile
ECG App. This has provided relief to customers who no longer
have to queue for long hours to buy electricity units. Also, for
people whose credit runs out at odd hours they can purchase
electricity credit on their mobile phones 24 hours a day! Now
for people who need a new service or separate meter from
ECG, they can also apply online 24 hours a day! 3.5 million
people are on the ECG App. As a result of the digitization,
ECG’s monthly revenue collections have increased from GHC
450 million per month to GHC 1.2 billion a month (an
increase by 166%).
DOMESTIC REVENUE MOBILIZATION
87. Ladies and Gentlemen, Ghana has a major challenge in
the area of domestic revenue mobilization. The tax/GDP ratio
is about 14.0% compared to 27% for South Africa and 34%
for the advanced (OECD) countries. Most adults are outside
the tax net and compliance is very low. At the beginning of
2017, only 4% of the adult population of Ghana had Tax
Identification Numbers (TIN).
88. To increase the number of people with TIN numbers, I
proposed that we designate the Ghanacard number as the TIN
number. In doing this, we increased the percentage of adults
with TIN numbers from 4% to 85%! It is now incumbent on
the GRA to use this database in tax collection and broaden
the tax net.
89. Furthermore, with oversight from my office, the SSNIT,
NHIS, GRA, Passport, CAGD payroll, DVLA, SIM card, Bank
account etc. have been linked to the NIA database. Today your
SSNIT number is your Ghanacard number, your NHIS
number is your Ghanacard number, your TIN number is your
Ghanacard number etc. The integration of the databases is
allowing us to successfully weed out ghost workers on payroll.
A biometric audit of the National Service Scheme payroll alone
found 44,707 ghost workers and potential ghost workers
between 2022 to 2024, this has saved Ghana a total of GHC
356 million. Also, SSNIT has suspended payment of GHC 480
million to 29,000 ghost pensioners using the Ghanacard. We
have also integrated the CAGD payroll database with the NIA
database to eliminate ghost workers on government payroll.
Through digitalization we have finally been able to solve the
longstanding problem of ghost workers on government
payroll.
90. Digitalization of the tax filing process: Many people,
including highly educated people, find the process of filing
taxes complex. To make it easier and less cumbersome to file
taxes, I challenged the GRA to come up with a simple to use
mobile App to enable ordinary people file and pay taxes using
their mobile phones and this has been done. Today, you can
file your taxes 24 hours a day!
IMPROVING THE EFFICIENCY OF HEALTHCARE DELIVERY
Digitalization of Hospitals and Medical Records:
91. To make healthcare easily accessible across the country,
we have overseen the connection of health facilities under the
Ghana Health Service (GHS) on to one digital platform. So far,
all teaching hospitals and all regional and district hospitals
have been connected and can talk to each other. The goal is
to network over 90% of all hospitals in Ghana by the end of
next year.
92. So, currently, if you are referred from a hospital like
Tamale Teaching Hospital to Korle-bu Teaching Hospital in
Accra, you do not need to carry a folder. All your records will
be seen and monitored by the doctor in Korle Bu when you
arrive. Patients will have only one digital folder wherever they
go. Your health records can be accessed 24 hours a day from
any of the 302 networked hospitals so far.
93. National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA): Digitizing
the operations of the NHIA has helped reduce fraudulent
claims. The renewal of all national health insurance
registrations used to take place at the various NHIA district
offices. This led to backlogs and long queues. In some
instances people slept for days at some district offices. These
delays hampered the operations and limited the revenue
streams of the NHIA.
94. With oversight from my office, we have digitized the
enrollment for and renewal of National Health Insurance
membership. Following digitalization, renewal of health
insurance registration via mobile phone (*929#) can take
place 24 hours a day and this has eliminated these
bottlenecks and also increased access to health care by those
who need the services most.
Medical Drones
95. Ladies and Gentlemen, I remember with so much pain
when my father underwent an operation in Tamale Teaching
hospital. He was losing blood that night and the doctors were
trying to get blood for him. We rushed to the blood bank but
it was closed. I tried to get the phone number of the one in
charge and made several calls to no avail. We were running
against time and by the morning my dad had died. That
painful experience is forever with me. So when I heard about
the Zipline drone technology that could deliver blood and
other medicines in an emergency, I was determined to get it
for Ghana to save many lives that are needlessly lost.
96. I went to Sillicon Valley in the USA and had a meeting
with the co-founder of Zipline (Robert Keller) and convinced
him to set up Zipline in Ghana. When I announced the
imminent arrival of Zipline in Ghana, our friends in the
opposition said the drones were for taking pictures of women
in their bathrooms!
97. Ladies and Gentlemen, previously, hospitals and clinics
in remote and largely rural communities like Nyangbo Sroe in
Afajato South, Afram Plains , Yagaba or Yunyoo had difficulty
getting medical supplies especially in times of emergencies
involving, for example snake bites, child-birth, blood loss,
floods, etc. Many lives are needlessly lost because the
hospitals are unable to access critically needed supplies on
time. To address this problem, Ghana opted to partner
Zipline, the world’s largest automated on-demand delivery
service for medical supplies.
98. There are six Zipline Distribution Centres (DC) in
Omenako (Eastern Region), Mpanya (Ashanti Region), Vobsi
(North East Region), Sefwi Wiawso (Western North Region),
Kete Krachi (Oti Region) and Anum (Eastern Region). Zipline
has made millions of deliveries of medicines, blood and
vaccines to very remote parts of Ghana and has saved many
lives. Zipline services are available 24 hours a day!
99. I should add that Ghana currently has the largest medical
drone delivery service in the world! What is even more
impressive is that the drone centers are 100% manned by
young talented Ghanaians.
100. National Electronic Pharmacy Platform:
Ladies and Gentlemen, in 2019, I challenged the
Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana during their Annual meeting
in Ho to go digital and place all pharmacies on a digital platform
for ease of access by Ghanaians. The Pharmacy Council in
collaboration with the private sector has completed work on a
digital platform for all pharmacies in Ghana.
101. Basically, the National Electronic Pharmacy Platform will
offer the opportunity to everyone through a mobile phone to
upload your prescriptions and find out which pharmacies
near you have the medicines. Secondly you can compare the
prices for the same drug offered by different prices so that you
can buy from the lowest priced pharmacies.
102. Ghanaians will experience the E-Pharmacy Platform in full
operation this year when every pharmacy is onboarded. Epharmacy services will be available 24 hours a day!
103. Ladies and Gentlemen, over the last seven years we have
witnessed what some international observers have described
as an “extraordinary digitalization ” of the Ghanaian economy.
But this extraordinary digitalization has not happened in a
vacuum. We have had to put in place the critical
infrastructure to support digitalization. I should note that
93% of the NCA licensed fibre optic network in Ghana (7,234
km) has been constructed since 2017. In addition, we have
implemented a National Government Cloud Infrastructure,
cybersecurity infrastructure and deployed the Public Key
Infrastructure (PKI) to provide another layer of security to
citizens to support digitalization.
104. What is remarkable about Ghana’s digitalization journey
is that the various initiatives were implemented using local IT
companies and local talent. It was deliberately done that way.
105. Ladies and Gentlemen, so if as my prospective employer
you as ask me the question: “So Dr. Bawumia, you want to be
President of Ghana. Can you tell us what you did for Ghana
in your capacity as Vice-President?” I will say in response that
I have, with the support of the President , had the honour
and privilege to be given the opportunity to initiate, champion
or oversee many problem solving policy initiatives including:
• Many of digitalization initiatives that I have just discussed,
• No Guarantor student loans with Ghanacard
• One Constituency One ambulance
• Zipline Drones
• Agenda 111
• Sinohydro Barter Agreement
• Provision of Hydroyurea under NHIS for Sickle Cell Patients
• Zongo Development Fund
• Bank of Ghana Gold Purchase Program
• Gold for Oil Policy
• Abolishing the filling of embarkation and disembarkation cards
at the airport
• Go Ride taxi service for local taxi drivers
• System to tackle ghost names on government payroll
• And many more.
106. It is important to note that many of the transformational
policy initiatives that we have introduced since 2017 are being
done for the first time since independence. What is interesting
is that because many of them have not been done before,
many people who think in terms of impossibility argued that
they are not possible but we made them possible. Criticisms
and name calling eventually gave way to reality as the nation
is greatly benefiting from these initiatives which I
championed.
107. What we have been able to accomplish so far shows that it
is possible for Ghana to achieve many things that some
believe to be impossible. It is possible if we put our minds to
it. We need to break the shackles of impossibility and embrace
the mindset of possibility.
My Vision
Ladies and Gentlemen,
108. As Vice-President I am like a driver’s mate. But if, by the
Grace of God, you make me President, I will be in the drivers
seat with constitutionally mandated authority to pursue my
vision and my priorities. So, what do I want to do in terms of
vision, priorities and policies if you give me the opportunity,
by the Grace of God, to become President of the Republic of
Ghana?
109. Ladies and Gentlemen, in this regard, I have been engaged
in a lot of consultation and doing a lot of thinking in the last
few months about lessons of the last seven years as well as
my vision and priorities as I seek to become President of the
Republic of Ghana. Clearly, the initial conditions that we
inherited in 2017 are not the same as will be in 2025.
Therefore, my priorities will be different. We have done many
good things and I will be seeking to build on them.
110. My vision is to create a tent big enough to accommodate all
our people, to tap into the resourcefulness and talents of our
people irrespective of our different ethnic, political and religious
backgrounds, to channel our energies into building the kind of
country that assures a food self-sufficient, safe, prosperous,
and dignified future for all Ghanaians, to create sustainable
jobs with meaningful pay for all, and for Ghana to participate
fully in the fourth industrial revolution using systems and data.
To realize this vision:
A MINDSET OF POSSIBILITIES
111. We must have a mindset of possibilities and not
impossibilities. The challenges we must overcome as a
country are too important to let our political differences derail
us. There is a critical failure of mindset that manifests itself
in the absence of core values, patriotism and principles within
our society. We need to invigorate the can-do spirit of the
Ghanaian to believe that we can even do better than we ever
imagined if we put our minds to it. For example, our students
from Mamfe Girls and Prempeh College have won
international robotic competitions against their peers in the
US, Germany and South Korea. We must apply the same
mindset of beating the world in robotics, Sing-a-Thons and
Cook-a-Thons to every sphere of activity. We must believe IT
IS POSSIBLE!!!. This must be inculcated in our children from
home and in school. This is why we are going to introduce a
growth mindset curriculum to help students build critical
skills such us problem solving, risk taking, opportunity
spotting and design thinking.
SUSTAINED MACROECONOMIC STABILITY
112. Ladies and Gentlemen, a major goal of my government
would be to attain and sustain macroeconomic stability with
low inflation, low interest rates, exchange rate stability and
low budget deficits.
PRUDENTLY MANAGING GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE, INCREASING
REVENUE AND LEVERAGING THE PRIVATE SECTOR
113. To sustainably reduce the budget deficit and interest
rates, my government will enhance fiscal discipline through
an independent fiscal responsibility council enshrined in the
Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2018 (Act 982). The Fiscal
responsibility Act will also be amended to add a fiscal rule
that requires that budgeted expenditure in any year does not
exceed 105% of the previous years tax revenue. This will
prevent the experience of budgetary expenditures based on
optimistic revenue forecasts which don’t materialize.
114. Furthermore my government will reduce the fiscal burden
on government by leveraging the private sector. Under the
two-term administration of His Excellency Nana AkufoAddo’s government, we have put in place many social safety nets like free SHS, Free TVET, etc. With all these social safety nets in place, my government will now focus on jobs, and
wealth creation by the private sector for all Ghanaians. My
administration will incentivize the private sector to
complement government in the provision of many
infrastructure and other services to reduce government
expenditure and improve maintenance.
115. The private sector will be encouraged to build roads,
schools, hostels, and houses for government to rent or lease
to own. The demand for roads construction is massive and
this has historically placed a huge burden on the budget. I
believe that the private sector should finance the construction
and maintenance of roads through PPP concession
arrangements . Also, government will move towards leasing
rather than purchasing vehicles, printing equipment, etc. The
private sector will have the responsibility for maintaining the
equipment. With this approach, the budget can save very
significant outright cash expenditure annually from various
items across different Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
This policy will energize the private sector and create many
jobs.
116. Enhancing the role of the private sector along with fiscal
and administrative decentralization, improving our systems
and the way our institutions function will lead to greater
efficiency; cutting waste and ensuring value for money in
procurement. The move towards the private sector provision
of many public services would create fiscal space of at least
3% of GDP. This represents a major paradigm shift.
Additionally, an efficient system of governance will require
even fewer ministers. Therefore I would have no more than 50
ministers and deputy ministers.
A NEW TAX SYSTEM
117. To increase government tax revenue, we have to reform
and refocus the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) towards
broadening the tax base. Unfortunately, the pressure that is
placed on GRA staff to collect revenues makes them focus on
existing tax payers. Sometimes they even have to go to sit in
peoples shops to monitor sales (a process known as
invigilation). In fact, many businesses feel harassed by this
process and the constant audits of their operations. This has
to stop. We must strike the right balance between collecting
revenue and allowing businesses to thrive. Our job is to
protect the productive forces.
Estimates suggests revenues amounting to 13% of GDP (or $24
billion in 2023) are not collected because people are outside the
tax net. Even collecting half of or a quarter of this annually will
be a game changer for public finances. To do this, we need to
inculcate and enforce a culture of people filing their tax returns.
Incentives must be provided to encourage people to file their tax
returns even if they will pay zero taxes. We need a fresh start.
118. The current tax regime has been with us since
independence and it has failed us. Many of the wealthy do not
pay taxes (including property taxes). Too much discretion
results in corruption. We want a regime that is easy to
understand, easy to comply with and easy to enforce and that
is not subject to so much discretion. Many individuals and
businesses find our tax system cumbersome and confusing
and many feel harassed by the GRA.
119. My administration will introduce a very simple, citizen and
business friendly flat tax regime. A flat tax of a % of income
for individuals and SMEs (which constitute 98% of all
businesses in Ghana) with appropriate exemption thresholds
set to protect the poor. With the new tax regime, the tax
return should be able to be completed in minutes! We will also
simplify our complicated corporate tax system and VAT
regime.
120. To start the new tax system on a clean slate, my
government will provide a tax amnesty (i.e. a complete
exemption from the payment of taxes for a specified period
and the waiving of interest and penalties) up to a certain year
to individuals and businesses for failures to file taxes in
previous years so that everyone will start afresh.
121. Tax digitalization will be implemented across all aspects of
tax administration. Everyone will be required to file a very
simple tax return electronically through their mobile phone or
computer. There will be no manual or paper filing of taxes
from 2025. Faceless assessments will provide transparency
and accountability. There will be no need for GRA to send
officers to go sit in shops. E-invoicing, as being implemented
by the GRA will be extended to all companies. Estonia, India
and Mexico will provide very useful models for Ghana in the
area of tax digitalization.
122. Any audits by GRA would also be done electronically and
facelessly by GRA. Furthermore, no entity would be audited
more than once in five years unless anomalies are detected
which the individual or company does not correct after being
given the opportunity to do so.
123. We will amend the law such that if there is a dispute about
tax assessment, a binding arbitration will take place through
a body constituted by institutions such as the Ghana
Arbitration Center, Institute of Taxation, AGI, Institute of
Chartered Accountants, PEF, and Ghana Employers
Association with a mandate to resolve any appeal in a
maximum of three months. This will not affect companies who
by their agreements have such arbitrations taking place in
international jurisdictions.
124. With cuts in government expenditure, the private sector
undertaking expenditure that would normally be done by
government and the new tax regime that will enhance
compliance, broaden the tax base, and increase tax revenue,
the situation we are going to face in 2025 is going to be very
different from the situation we faced in 2020 and 2022. With
the policy measures implemented thus far, we have
outperformed the IMF fiscal deficit target of 5% of GDP by
attaining a fiscal deficit of 4.2% in 2023. The new policies that
I am proposing to implement in 2025 will give us the fiscal
space to eliminate some taxes such as the VAT on electricity,
the emissions tax and the betting tax without compromising
our deficit target.
BUILD A DIGITAL ECONOMY AND MAKE GHANA A DIGITAL
HUB
125. I want to build a Ghana where we leverage technology,
data and systems for inclusive economic growth. I want us to
apply digital technology, STEM, robotics and artificial
intelligence for the transformation of agriculture, healthcare,
education, manufacturing, fintech and public service
delivery. As part of this process it is my goal to eliminate the
digital divide by achieving close to 100% internet
penetration. We have already made very significant progress
in this direction by increasing internet penetration from 34%
in 2016 to 72% in 2023 (by more than double!!!). The task in
the next four years is to move from 72% to close to 100%! It
is possible!
126. I want to see Ghana build the digital talent we require for
the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This will mean providing
digital and software skills to hundreds of thousands of youth.
This along with other policies, will create jobs for the youth,
including school dropouts. In collaboration with the private
sector, we will train at least 1,000,000 youth in IT skills,
including software developers to provide job opportunities
worldwide.
127. Generally, there will be an enhanced focus on TVET
education. My government will also support the
establishment of a National Open University Ghana in
collaboration with the private sector with a focus on Technical
and vocational skills and ICT.
128. Ladies and Gentlemen, to help our youth get jobs, I believe
it is time to rethink the concept of our current national service
scheme. My government will propose that those who after
completion of their education can secure jobs would be
exempted from national service. National service will no
longer be mandatory and students will have the option to
decide whether to do national service. This will also encourage
companies to go to campuses for recruitment annually.
129. Ladies and Gentlemen, to prepare our children for the
fourth industrial revolution workplace I will enhance the
repositioning of the education system towards STEM,
Robotics, Artificial Intelligence and vocational skills to cope
with the demands of the fourth Industrial Revolution and job
creation. My government would make coding and robotics
standard in senior high school. The foundation is being laid
with the provision of laptops to SHS students soon. Teachers
have already been given the requisite training. Following the
senior high school students we will also implement a One
student one laptop policy for tertiary students through the
provision of a zero interest loan with a 70% discount on the
cost of the laptop (payable over 4 years) for tertiary students
who need the laptops.
130. Furthermore, to become a digital hub in Africa, Ghana’s
telecoms industry needs more investment. The cost of data for
the ordinary Ghanaian has become too expensive. It goes
against the very ethos of our digitalization journey. The
industry cannot continue to operate at the efficiency and
pricing levels of the least efficient operators. The focus has to
be on the best efficiency and pricing for the consumer. I
commit to working with industry players in setting clear
policy guidelines that will remove any investor uncertainty
and difficulties in business planning, including the
expeditious allocation of spectrum, driven more by the goal
of enhancing digital inclusion and less by revenue
considerations.
REDUCING THE COST OF LIVING
131. Ladies and Gentlemen, a major priority of my government
will be to reduce the cost of living. The cost of living in the
world has increased massively following the COVID pandemic
and the Russia-Ukraine war. Global inflation increased from
1.55% in 2016 to 8.27% at the end of 2022 (a five fold
increase!). In particular, the increase in the cost of living has
been driven by increases in food prices, energy prices,
housing (rents) and transport prices. Any attempt to reduce
the cost of living on a sustainable basis must therefore tackle
agriculture, energy, housing and transport prices and that is
what I am going to do.
132. I want a Ghana where we attain food security through the
application of technology and irrigation to commercial large
scale farming. We will also promote the use of agricultural
lime to reduce the acidity of our soils, enhance soil fertility
and get more yield from the application of fertilizers. Ghana
has an abundance of limestone to do this. I will prioritise the
construction of the Pwalugu Dam by using private sector
financing to crowd-in grant financing.
133. My administration will work to reduce the cost of public
transport between 30-40% with the adoption of electric
vehicles for public transportation. The public transport
pricing formula is dominated by two key variables; the price
of fuel and the price of spare parts. Electric vehicles do not
use petrol or diesel and spare parts are minimal. That is what
will bring down the fares for EVs. More importantly, transport
fares for EVs will be stable and the constant and large
increases in fares will become a thing of the past.
134. Under a Housing for All policy, I will also have a major
focus on the provision of Public Housing in the same manner
that Singapore did– We will partner with the private sector to
build large housing estates without the government having to
borrow or spend. Also, the National Rental Assistance scheme
(which is working so well) will be enhanced to deal with the
problem of demands for rent advance of two years and more.
POWER SECTOR REFORM
135. As part of the effort to reduce the cost of living, my
government will implement policies to have energy selfsufficiency at reduced cost through solar and other renewables with the application of market efficiency to the
energy market. We will diversify the generation mix by
introducing 2000MW of solar power and additional wind
power through independent power producers to reduce our
dependence on oil and gas by the end of my first term in office.
This will significantly reduce the cost of electricity.
136. The fact that current residential, commercial and
industrial consumer’s power is still neither reliable nor cost
competitive is a testament that the regulatory and
administrative measures so far implemented have not fully
achieved the objectives we have set for ourselves in dealing
with the legacy issues we inherited.
137. Therefore, like the telecom market, we shall work to bring
in the efficiency of markets, and expand competition from
more private sector participation in generation and retail.
138. With reliable and cost competitive power, we will attract
more manufacturing capacity into the country, create more
jobs, improve services, export more products, and support
our AfCFTA strategy to improve the participation of Ghanaian
industries in intra-africa exports and trade.
139. To assist in the transition to green energy, there will be no
import duty on solar panels.
A GOLDEN AGE FOR THE MAXIMIZATION OF THE BENEFITS
FROM NATURAL RESOURCES
140. Ladies and Gentlemen, as President, I will usher Ghana in
a Golden age for the maximization of the benefits from our
natural resources like gold, lithium, bauxite, and so on. The
key to doing this is value addition and Ghanaian ownership.
We need a new paradigm in natural resource contracts.
141. Some of the key policies I will implement to maximize our
benefits from our natural resources will include:
• Formalize, regularize and regulate environmentally
sustainable small scale mining. About one million people
are engaged in small scale mining. Our goal would be to
help grow small scale mining companies into large scale
tcompanies with capacity building and assisting them to
access financing to acquire equipment. We can create
many millionaires in the small scale mining industry if we
support them.
• My government will support the Minerals Commission and
key stakeholders to formalize the Artisanal and SmallScale Gold Mining (ASGM) sector with the objective of
ensuring that the activities of the entire value chain are
sustainably and responsibly done so that most of the gold
produced by this sector can be sold to the Bank of Ghana
(BoG) and be eligible to be part of the gold reserves of the
central bank.
• In line with this, we will license all miners doing
responsible mining . Districts Mining Committee
(including chiefs) will provide initial temporary licenses to
miners.
• As long as miners mine within the limits of their licenses
(e.g No mining in river or water bodies), there will no longer
be any seizure or burning of excavators.
• I will fully decentralize the minerals commission as well
as Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and ensure that
they are present in all mining districts.
• Every Ghanaian in Small Scale Mining will register under
Ghana Small Scale Miners Association with their
Ghanacard
• We will, in collaboration with the large mining companies,
convert abandoned shafts into community mining
schemes
• Open more new community mining schemes
• District mining committees should be responsible for
reclamation and replanting
• Pension scheme for small scale miners like we have done
for cocoa farmers.
• Introduce vocational and Skills training on sustainable
mining for small scale miners in the curriculum of TVET
institutions.
• Provide equipment to government authorities in mining
communities to undertake reclamation of land
• We will set up state of the art common user gold
processing units in mining districts in collaboration with
the private sector.
• My government will also conduct an audit of all
concessions with various licenses and new applications.
This will allow government to know licenses that have
expired, and non-compliance with licensing conditions.
• To encourage exploration, I will abolish the VAT on
exploration services (like assaying) to encourage more
exploration.
• We will establish, in collaboration with the private sector,
a Minerals Development Bank to support the mining
industry.
• We will establish (through the private sector) a London
Bullion Market Association (LBMA) certified gold refinery
in Ghana within four years.
• All responsibly mined small scale gold produced will be
sold to the central bank, PMMC or MIIF and will be
required to be refined before export.
INCREASE GHANA’S GOLD RESERVES TO SUPPORT THE CEDI
142. Ladies and Gentlemen, a major factor influencing
macroeconomic stability is the consistent depreciation of the
cedi against foreign currencies. This is usually caused by
pressure on our foreign exchange reserves. Appreciably
increasing our reserves of gold at the central bank combined
with prudent fiscal policy, is therefore one of the surest ways
to keep the exchange rate stable.
143. Two policies that helped rescue the economy from
catastrophe in the recent crisis were the Bank of Ghana’s
domestic gold purchase program and the gold for oil program.
The domestic gold purchase program (DGPP) is a program
where the Bank of Ghana boosts its foreign exchange reserves
by buying locally produced gold with cedis. Before this
program, the total gold reserves of Ghana since independence
was 8.7 tons. This compares to 3,352 tons for Germany,
2,814 tons for the IMF, 2,451 tons for Italy, and 8,133 tons
for the United States. It did not make sense to me that Ghana,
the largest gold producer in Africa, will have some of the
lowest holdings of gold reserves so I proposed to the Bank of
Ghana to start a Gold Purchase Program.
144. The Gold for oil program on the other hand allows the
payment for oil imports with gold. So importers provide cedis
which the Bank of Ghana uses to buy gold and pays the
suppliers of the oil. This reduces the pressure on Ghana’s
foreign exchange reserves and stabilizes the exchange rate.
The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has purchased 26 tonnes of gold
(US$1.73 billion) since inception of the domestic gold purchase
program under its gold for reserves policy. The government of
Ghana’s Gold for Oil programme which started in late December
of 2022 has purchased 16 tonnes of gold (US$1.06 billion) that
has been available for the import of petroleum products.
Together, the gold for reserves and gold for oil programmes have
unlocked US$2.79 billion to meet external payments of the
country in just over a year. These two policies have allowed us
to build foreign exchange reserves, pay for critical imports like
fuel, and stabilize the exchange rate. It is important to note that
the $2.79 billion unlocked is almost equivalent to the $3 billion
loan we have obtained from the International Monetary Fund to
be disbursed over three years! What is clear to me is that if we
had started implementing these policies say 20 years ago,
Ghana would be in a very different situation today.
145. However, given the large amount of gold reserves Ghana
has, this is just the tip of the iceberg. Ghana has seven large
gold belts stretching from Axim and Winneba to Nangodi and
Lawra. According to the Geological Survey Department, the
belts cover an area of 43,000 square kilometres, with about
50% (21,000 km) not explored yet. The conservative estimate
is that the potential quantum of gold in these unexplored
belts is around 5 billion ounces. This has a market value
today of $10 trillion dollars. My government will engage
exploration experts from the universities and geological
Institutions to assist in exploring our seven gold belts.
However, even if only 5% of this 5 billion ounce estimate
materializes, it will be a game changer for Ghana.
146. My government will provide the Geological Survey
Department and our universities with resources annually to
undertake a mapping of areas where we have gold reserves.
As a matter of policy, we will legislate that concessions in
these areas with proven reserves will be 100% Ghanaian
owned since with proven gold reserves, we can easily raise the
capital required and hire the expertise.
147. Our policy will be to build Ghana’s gold reserves
appreciably to reach a point when we have sufficient gold
reserves to keep our external payments position sustainably
strong. This, along with a supportive fiscal discipline, will
provide long-term stability for the exchange rate of the cedi
and at the same time reduce our dependence on the
Eurobond markets.
148. I believe that the maximization of the benefits from our
natural resources will help create jobs, improve livelihoods,
and also improve the conditions of service of Ghanaian
workers.
INDUSTRIALIZATION FOR JOBS
149. Ladies and Gentlemen, I will continue our policy of
industrialization (in areas such as agro-processing (cocoa,
cashew sheanuts, etc.) salt, gold and lithium refining and
manufacture of batteries, and automobile assembly and
manufacture) and also empower the local business sector,
especially startups and SMEs to drive investment and growth
in Ghana, thus significantly boosting job creation. We must
also protect local industry from smuggled imports that evade
import duties.
150. Special Economic Zones ( Free Zones) will also be created
in collaboration with the private sector at Ghana’s major
border towns such as Aflao, Paga, Elubo, Sankasi and Tatale
to enhance economic activity, increase exports, reduce
smuggling and create jobs.
151. Tema port will be fully automated and benchmarked to be
as efficient as some of the best ports in the world like Hong
Kong, Singapore and Dubai. Also there will be a new policy of
aligning the duties and charges at Tema port to the duties and
charges at Lome Port. Basically duties and charges at Tema
Port should not be higher than Lome, our main competitor.
This will also reduce smuggling and tax avoidance. Also for
spare parts importers duties will be at a flat rate per container
(20 or 40 foot).
DEALING WITH CORRUPTION THROUGH DIGITALIZATION AND
A CASHLESS SOCIETY
Ladies and Gentlemen,
152. I entered politics to serve the nation. My passion is solving
problems. My passion is helping the poor, vulnerable and
disadvantaged in society. Accumulation of wealth is not and
has never been my passion or ambition. This why throughout
my public life I have pursued policies, especially through
digitalization, to check corruption in places like the ports,
DVLA, NHIS, Passport Office, CAGD, etc. So I have a solid
track record in fighting corruption. And I have earned a
reputation for doing so.
153. One of the most potent weapons against corruption is
transparency. Many corrupt activities are cash-based. Apart
from the obvious economic benefits of moving in the direction
of a cashless society, the literature does indicate that the
more electronic payments are used in transactions as
opposed to cash, the more there is traceability and therefore
the less the corruption. I would like to bring Ghana close to a
cashless economy in the shortest possible time. So far the
Bank of Ghana, has made a lot of progress in this direction
by putting in place a lot of the systems and infrastructure
required. These include mobile money interoperability,
merchant interoperability, Universal QRCode payment
system, Gh-Link, debit cards, Ezwich, and GhanaPay. We
have put in place the necessary infrastructure for Ghana to
go cashless.
154. Recently the Bank of Ghana has completed a pilot of a
digital version of the Ghana cedi note in Sefwi Wiawso. This
is known as central bank digital currency (CBDC) or e-cedi.
The e-cedi is designed to work online and offline and will be
launched by the Bank of Ghana in due couse. In my humble
opinion, the e-cedi, with appropriate privacy protections, will
be the ultimate weapon in our fight against corruption
because it will provide transparency, reduce the risk of fraud,
robbery, tax avoidance, and money laundering since it will be
easy to track the movement of money and identify suspicious
activity. The e-cedi will quicken the pace of Ghana’s move
towards a cashless or near cashless society.
155. To move towards a cashless economy however, we have to
encourage the population to use electronic channels of
payment. To accomplish this, there will be no taxes on digital
payments under my administration. The e-levy will therefore
be abolished.
156. Furthermore, I will cause to be published online details of
all public contracts for public scrutiny.
DEVELOPING A CREDIT SYSTEM FOR GHANA
157. Ladies and Gentlemen, in advanced economies, workers
are able to easily access credit to purchase basic items such
as Televisions, cars, and houses. They are able to do so
because the credit system works and it is supported by
individualized credit scoring by credit rating agencies. In
Ghana, such a credit system is yet to develop and therefore
life is harder for workers. It is my goal to make it easier and
cheaper to access credit by Leveraging on our data and
systems such as Ghanacard, GhanapostGPS, Mobile money
Interoperability, DVLA, GRA, Bank Accountts, etc. to build an
efficient credit system and mortgage market in Ghana
underpinned by individualized credit scoring and the
digitalization of land titling and transfer. We look forward to
starting individualized credit scoring in Ghana this year and
this will make it easier for Ghanaians to access credit at lower
interest rates.
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN
158. I believe we can find broad contours of a national
development plan for which we can find consensus in areas
such as education, health, industrialization, environment etc.
I will support such a consensus national development
plan. Specifically, I will propose to amend Article 87 of the
1992 Constitution as well as the NDPC Act (Act 479) to
mandate political party manifestoes, and consequently
Economic and Social policies of governments, as well as
budgets, to be aligned to the agreed on broad contours in
specific sectors.
CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW
159. The current constitution was designed mainly for political
stability and it has achieved that . We need to amend it with
the help of Parliament to align it more for national
development. In that context, I am committed to the process
to amend the 1992 Constitution through extensive public
consultation, with key emphasis on issues such as ex-gratia,
the rights of dual citizens, election of MMDCEs to deepen
decentralization, and empowering institutions while reducing
the power of the President.
COLLABORATION WITH FAITH-BASED ORGANIZATIONS
160. I want a Ghana where we place an emphasis on values and
doing the right things, with the human factor playing its
appropriate role in curbing corruption, bribery, crime,
dishonesty, etc. A culture of governance founded on ethical
values, transparency, professionalism and meritocracy to
create a modern government machinery, that exhibits more
intensity and determination to impose order, discipline and
enforce compliance of the rules and regulations that are in
place.
161. In this regard, we will have a strong partnership between
government and faith-based organizations. The contribution
of Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs) e.g. Catholic Bishops
Conference, Christian Council, Pentecostal Council, and
Muslim Council, in areas such as education, health,
infrastructure, and youth development is very significant and
complements Government’s efforts.
TOURISM, SPORTS AND CREATIVE ARTS
162. Ladies and Gentlemen, I will also have a major focus on
policies, tax and other incentives to increase private and
public investment in tourism, creative arts and sports for
more job creation. We will build on the Year of Return, Beyond
the Return, December in Ghana. We will introduce other
initiatives such as digital and streaming platforms for our
artists to make tourism and the creative arts a growth pole in
Ghana. Tax incentives will also be provided for film producers
and musicians. To boost tourism and job creation, my
government will implement an e-visa policy for all
international visitors to Ghana to enable visas to be obtained
in minutes subject to security and criminal checks.
163. Sports is a multi-million dollar industry and an enabler for
the youth. However, we have not realized our full sports
potential, and we cannot maximize the full potential of Ghana
sports, with the same funding module we have operated with
since independence. My government will therefore, prioritise
the creation of incentives for corporate sponsorship as a
sustainable module of financing sports development and
promotion for our national teams, including football, athletics
and boxing at all levels. This will take the financial pressure
off government, and also enable government to redirect more
support to other sports disciplines.
164. My government, as part of a broad sports development
vision, will establish the Ghana School Sports Secretariat,
which will be an agency under the ministry responsible for
sports, in collaboration with other stakeholders such as the
GES and sports federations. My government will also seek
school-level collaboration with international sports bodies like
the NBA and NFL to make Ghana a hub for these emerging
sports in Africa, to create more opportunities for young
people. We have already tried this with the NFL, the governing
body for American Football, which agreed to host in Ghana,
in 2022, the first ever NFL Flag Football in Africa after my
engagement with them. This paved the way for 10 young
Ghanaians to be selected to the United States to represent
Africa in a global NFL tournament last year. Another set of
young Ghanaians, who were picked after the 2nd NFL Africa
Football was also held in Ghana last year, are currently in the
United States to represent Africa.
CARE FOR THE VULNERABLE AND SPECIAL NEEDS
165. I want to build a nation that cares for and invests in the
vulnerable like persons with disabilities, the aged, street kids,
lepers, cerebral palsy patients, etc. in cooperation with faith
based institutions and the private sector. My government will
also focus on special needs. To start with, we will recruit
1,000 special education teachers and retrain teachers on how
to work with special needs students. We will also train more
speech and language therapists and occupational and
behavioural therapists.
ADDITIONAL PRIORITIES
166. Ladies and Gentlemen, we have secured visa free travel to
a growing list of countries for the benefit of our citizens and
businesses. However, the acquisition of passports by
Ghanaians at home and abroad has continued to be difficult
for many even though it has significantly improved. So far,
Ghana has about 4.5 million passport holders and 17 million
people enrolled on the Ghanacard (which is also an epassport). To make it easy for Ghanaians to obtain passports, under my government, any Ghanacard holder will only have to pay a fee for a passport . If you a holder of a Ghanacard,
you will not need to apply separately for a passport. You just
provide Your Ghanacard number and pay the fee through
your mobile phone. This is because the Ghanacard contains
all the information and biometrics required for a regular
passport. Your passport can then be delivered to your home
using your digital address.
167. A Bawumia administration will prioritize the full
implementation of the Affirmative Action Act as should
hopefully have been passed by January 2025.
168. Under my government, Free SHS will continue and we will
improve upon it.
169. My government will expand infrastructure at medical
schools as well as the Ghana Law School to support an
increase in admission for students for medical and legal
studies.
170. Ladies and Gentlemen, These are just my initial ideas. The
manifesto team for the campaign will come out with a
comprehensive manifesto in due course.
CONCLUSION
171. Ladies and Gentlemen, so far, I have spoken about the
economy, my contributions, my vision my priorities and
policies. In conclusion, the choice Ghanaians face in 2024 is
between Vice-President Bawumia and former President
Mahama. It is fundamentally a choice between the future and
the past. We have to ask ourselves a number of questions in
making that choice:
• If you want someone you can you trust to come up with
innovative and impactful ideas to transform Ghana, then it is
Dr. Bawumia.
• If it is someone with personal integrity who is not corrupt, and
can be trusted to fight corruption, then your choice, clearly, is
Dr. Bawumia.
•And, if the person you have in mind is someone you can trust
to work hard and tirelessly and selflessly for Ghana, it is Dr.
Bawumia.
• If you want a leader who has a proven record, and who you can
trust to create jobs for the youth, it is Dr. Bawumia.
•A man to trust to take care of the poor, disabled and
vulnerable, It is Dr. Bawumia.
• if you are looking for the man who has the vision and
commitment to prepare Ghana for the Fourth Industrial
revolution, it is Dr. Bawumia.
• If you are looking for the man who is more committed to
protecting and using our natural resources for the benefit of
Ghanaians, It is Dr. Bawumia.
• Who will be more accountable to Ghanaians? A one term
president like my competitor, or a person who can look to the
long-term development of Ghana because he can have two
terms? It is Dr. Bawumia.
•who can you trust to protect and improve Free SHS? Once
again, it is Dr. Bawumia.
•Who can you trust to improve the National Health Insurance
Scheme and improve the quality of healthcare in Ghana? It is
Dr. Bawumia.
• who has demonstrated a commitment to the development of
deprived communities like the Zongo Communities? it is Dr.
Bawumia.
172. Ladies and Gentlemen, many people have said that I am
the most impactful Vice President in Ghana since
independence. I do not intend to compare what I have
achieved as Vice President under President Akufo-Addo to
that of a Vice President who could not, perhaps, make a mark.
I would let you be the judge of that. But I can say that I have
never been President of Ghana before. I am presenting myself
to you for the first time to ask for your precious vote to serve
you as your President. And in all humility, I would like you to
give me the opportunity to become one of the most impactful
presidents in Ghana’s history.
173. I have outlined many far-reaching measures in this
speech. These are measures that should put us on the right
path and transform our economy. I know that many of us
might be tempted to say we have heard many bright and even
brave ideas before, and that will be true. Many will say the
problem we have is not the lack of ideas, but implementation.
Many will say the problem is leadership. Ladies and
gentlemen, I offer only what has guided me throughout my
life. Hard work, personal integrity, accountability.
174. I am eager to serve. I am ready to work. I am determined
to make a difference; a positive difference. I will work for you
and with you; with honesty and integrity; with wisdom, and
decisiveness. I have clarity in my mind as to what I want to
do from day one if you make me President. I will not ask for a
honeymoon to cool-off and think about what to do with the
responsibility you would give me. I am prepared and ready to
work if you give me the opportunity. You know what I stand
for. You know my vision. My vision is all about fulfilling your
mission. I believe in the ingenuity of the Ghanaian. Together,
we can succeed in building a progressive society of
possibilities, enterprise, compassion, open opportunities and
shared prosperity for every Ghanaian, born rich or poor, born
in the north or the south, born Christian or Muslim, born girl
or boy.
With your support, prayers, and God’s guidance, we can win
together. IT IS POSSIBLE!!!
Thank you for your attention.
God bless you and
God bless our homeland Ghana