Bank of Ghana (BoG) Governor Dr Johnson Asiama has stressed the need for continued fiscal discipline to preserve Ghana’s recent economic gains.
He said government must maintain expenditure restraint and mobilise the revenue needed to support the economy.
He also identified prudent debt management and fiscal discipline as essential to sustaining debt and strengthening investor confidence.
“Prudent debt management and fiscal discipline will be critical to preserving debt sustainability, strengthening investor confidence, and reducing fiscal risks to the macroeconomic outlook,” he said.
Dr Asiama made the remarks at a meeting with Managing Directors and heads of commercial banks at the Bank Square in Accra.
He said government’s fiscal performance in the first quarter of 2026 had provided an important anchor for macroeconomic stability.
“Fiscal performance in the first quarter of 2026 broadly reflected strong expenditure restraint, notwithstanding revenue shortfalls, resulting in better-than-targeted balances on a cash basis.”
The Governor also highlighted improvements in Ghana’s external position, noting that gross international reserves reached US$12.9 billion at the end of June 2026, equivalent to 5.0 months of import cover.
Despite recent pressures on the country’s reserves and developments in the Middle East, Dr Asiama said the economy continued to perform strongly.
Real GDP grew by 6.4% in the first quarter of 2026, compared with 6.2% in the same period of 2025. He said the growth was largely driven by the services and industrial sectors.
“The Bank’s Composite Index of Economic Activity also points to sustained and broad-based momentum in economic activity,” he added.
Dr Asiama also raised concerns about the continued issuance of dud cheques, noting that the Bank of Ghana had observed a high level of non-compliance.
He urged commercial banks to strengthen their monitoring mechanisms, intensify customer engagement and promote confidence in the use of cheques as a payment instrument.
The Governor further disclosed that the Bank of Ghana had intensified efforts to tackle unlicensed digital lending activities.
He said the central bank had begun publishing weekly lists of entities providing digital credit services without the requisite approval.
“Relevant law enforcement and regulatory agencies are also taking further action to facilitate the removal of non-compliant operators from the market,” he stated.
Dr Asiama said the central bank would continue to create a regulatory and policy environment that supports the banking sector.
“Bank of Ghana, for its part, will continue to provide the regulatory and policy environment necessary to support a sound, resilient, and growth-oriented banking sector.”
Source:Fiilafmonline/JoyBuss
