Economics Professor Godfred Alufar Bokpin has questioned the practical impact of Ghana’s improving economic indicators on ordinary citizens, arguing that declining inflation means little to commuters who continue to endure poor roads and lengthy journeys.
Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express on Tuesday, Prof Bokpin acknowledged the government’s progress in restoring macroeconomic stability but cautioned that its heavy reliance on expenditure cuts was delaying the benefits from reaching households.
“If somebody is spending nine to 12 hours to travel from here to Kumasi, inflation of 5.2% means nothing to that person,” he said.
He also highlighted the difficulties faced by commuters using the Accra-Tema Motorway, arguing that persistent infrastructure challenges make it difficult for citizens to appreciate improvements in headline economic figures.
“It’s simply because the approach we have adopted in restoring macroeconomic stability is going to take a while to reflect in the lives of Ghanaians,” he added.
His comments come ahead of the presentation of the 2027 Budget on Thursday, November 12, during which Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson is expected to outline the government’s New Economy programme.
The proposed four-year initiative is expected to focus on productive investment and economic transformation, marking a shift towards growth, employment creation and improved incomes.
However, the Minority in Parliament has questioned the programme’s financing arrangements and demanded accountability for existing flagship initiatives. It has also raised concerns about the disconnect between declining inflation and the cost-of-living pressures confronting households.
Prof Bokpin explained that the government’s fiscal approach had helped cool the economy by reducing aggregate demand but had done little to expand the country’s constrained productive capacity.
He maintained that extensive expenditure cuts were particularly difficult to justify in a country facing significant infrastructure deficits and requiring substantial public investment to stimulate growth.
“If you choose that approach, you will get the result, but the impact will not be felt by Ghanaians,” he said.
He further argued that restricting expenditure on key growth drivers could undermine the country’s ability to address its development challenges.
“So, for a country that is saddled with a huge infrastructure deficit, imposing restrictions on the growth drivers of the economy, such a country cannot celebrate extensive austerity expenditure cuts,” he stated.
Despite his reservations about the fiscal approach, Prof Bokpin acknowledged that the government had broadly achieved its stated objective of restoring macroeconomic stability during its first two years in office.
He cited declining inflation and interest rates, alongside the relative resilience of the cedi despite renewed pressure on the currency, as evidence of progress.
“To that extent, and to the extent that that is what we are set out to achieve in the first two years of the administration, I would say they’ve done quite well in restoring macroeconomic stability,” he said.
He indicated that the next major challenge for government would be to move beyond economic stabilisation and ensure that the gains achieved translate into productive investment, improved infrastructure and better living conditions for Ghanaians.
