Former Vice President of Ghana, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has asserted that Ghana’s economy was saved from collapse by the Gold-for-Oil and gold purchase programs implemented during his tenure under the previous Akufo-Addo administration.
During a recent interaction with the Young Executive Forum (YEF) in London, as part of his “Thank You Tour,” Dr Bawumia stated that the decision to use gold was deliberate and strategic, as it did not require foreign exchange.
He argued that Ghana’s current economic stability is a direct result of proactive interventions initiated by the NPP government before the current NDC administration took office. “If we had not instituted the gold purchase program as well as the gold-for-oil program, our economy would have collapsed, it would have, because where would we have gotten $5 billion just to support the economy? You wouldn’t have gotten it,” he said.
Dr Bawumia reported that the Bank of Ghana acquired $5 billion worth of gold in two years, surpassing the $3 billion secured from an IMF bailout, which came with stringent conditions.
He contrasted the NPP’s economic policies with the performance of the current NDC administration. “They have been in office so far, they’ve not even increased it by one ton, not a single one ton, people, after all the noise of the election, are paying attention to our reserves. That is one thing, which we have built to 30 tonnes,” he added.
He noted that when the NPP assumed power, Ghana’s gold reserves were just 8.7 tonnes, a figure that had remained unchanged for 65 years post-independence.
“If you are to the NDC to point out exactly what policy they have implemented that has resulted in the appreciation of the cedi. They cannot tell you one, they only passed their budget in March. They’ve not even issued any contracts or paid for anything. So, you cannot ascribe what is happening to the currency to a policy they have implemented,” he said.
