Ghana’s economy was facing challenges before COVID-19 struck, the World Bank’s Country Director has said.
According to Pierre Laporte, the World Bank has spoken to the President over the challenges ahead measures that should be taken by the government to resolve the situation.
“Yes, COVID-19 has not helped, but even before COVID-19, there were signs that the situation was getting a little bit more challenging. The key thing is to be transparent with the people”, he said at an event organized by the One Ghana Movement in Accra Tuesday.
He added: “Is it a really serious situation? Well, the numbers speak for themselves. The situation is very serious. At the World Bank, we’ve not hidden the fact when we’ve held discussions with government officials and even the head of state that, Ghana faces a very tough road ahead to restore macro sustainability.”
The government is seeking to shore up revenue by introducing an unpopular measure e-levy.
Despite earlier denials, the Roads and Highways Minister, Kwasi Amoako-Atta, has disclosed that the government will use the controversial Electronic Transfer Levy if passed to secure loans.
“The government in its wisdom has proposed the passage of the E-levy to bring more revenue to build the road infrastructure of our country for all of us. So the government is looking forward for the passage of the E-levy that will bring in greater revenue that would be securitized and then used to raise bond if possible to build the road infrastructure,” he told Parliament on Friday.
Meanwhile, on March 2, 2022, Deputy Finance Minister, John Ampotuah Kumah, said the E-Levy will not be used as collateral for the government’s debt.
