As of December 13, 2019, the Ghana cedi lost almost 13 percent of its value to the US dollar compared to the same period in 2018, when it shed about 8.2 percent to the US currency.
The cedi ended that day trading at US$1 to GH¢5.54, according to Bank of Ghana (BoG) data.
The December 13, 2019 depreciation rate is now the highest in the last four years, although it was a few percentage points shy of the 15.7 percent depreciation recorded in the whole of 2015.
From 2016 to 2018, the cedi depreciated by 9.6 percent, 4.9 percent, and 8.4 percent respectively.
In April 2017, The Vice President, Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia gave an account of the first 100 days in office of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government indicating that they have been able to “arrest” the fall of the cedi as well as made some 103 achievements.
In a humorous manner whilst delivering a 40-minute presentation, at a town hall meeting organized by Joy FM to assess the 100 days of President Akufo-Addo in office, the Vice President said the free fall of the cedi has been arrested, and the keys given to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) for safekeeping.
“When we came in, it [cedi] was running, essentially we have arrested it [cedi], and the IGP has the keys, he’s locked it up, we want to make sure we pursue sound policies to keep the cedi stable, it has appreciated for this year.“
Source: Kofi Atakora
