The Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Johnson Asiama has suspended the Gold for Oil Programme due to financial loss.
The programme, which was initially started by the NPP led government, was a barter transaction policy that was to see the country exchange some of its gold, rather than currency, for oil from some oil producing countries.
Since its inception, economic experts decried what they describe as lack of transparency in the policy. According to experts and the new NDC administration, there is not enough information on the policy for proper understanding. This, according to many, could become a breeding ground for corruption.
In an interview with bloomberg, Dr. Asiama lamented the financial loss the country has suffered under the programme.
“We have had to incur some losses on that, so we have put some suspension on the trade,” he said.
Meanwhile, the governor believes the country can still do well without the policy, as he also made reference to recent stability seen regarding the Cedi.
He has also assured that the BoG will adobt viable measures to ensure fiscal discipline.
“We intend to maintain an appropriate monetary policy stance. Together with commitments to fiscal discipline under the administration of President John Mahama, this should help us maintain stability in the foreign exchange markets,” he said.
In February, the Energy Minister, John Abdulai Jinapor disclosed that the government plans to replace the Gold for Oil Policy with a new framework due to lack of clarity on the programme.
“we are pursuing these reforms because of the opacity and lack of clarity. It is difficult to get information, even in respect of offshore and all these companies that are dealt with. The criteria for even selecting the companies in not clear-cut. So clearly there is a problem – that is why we want to reform.”
According to him, it the policy would be replaced with a “better programme.”
Source: Dehotpress
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