By Francis Ntow
Accra, May 14, GNA – Two Development Economists say deepening financial inclusion and lowering mobile money charges can reduce losses incurred by the Bank of Ghana (BoG) in managing inflationary pressures.
They argued that keeping more funds within banks and formal financial channels, including mobile money, would ease the Central Bank’s absorption of excess liquidity through open market operations, thereby reducing its losses.
The Development Economists, Professor Peter Quartey, Acting Director of Legon Centre for International Affairs and Diplomacy (LECIAD) and Dr Daniel Anim-Prempeh, Chief Economist with the Policy Initiative for Economic Development (PIED), said this in an exclusive interview with the Ghana News Agency following the Central Bank’s 2025 losses.
The Bank recorded an Operating Loss of GHS15.63 billion and an Other Comprehensive Income (OCI) loss of GHS19.32 billion in 2025, raising concerns about the high cost of stabilising the Cedi and the economy.
The losses stemmed from open market operation costs and the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme, while Cedi appreciation caused an OCI loss on foreign reserves, widening negative equity from GHS61.32 billion to GHS96.28 billion.
Prof Quartey explained that retaining money within the financial ecosystem, including digital wallets, would reduce the Central Bank’s interventions.
“If we can get more people to keep their money with the banks, then central bank would not be going out. People can then invest in long-term bonds and other financial assets, and all the funds will be in the banking system. The banks then channel them into production and manufacturing, and the real sector will grow,” he said.
Prof Quartey noted that unbanked Ghanaians increasingly use mobile money, with digital transactions rising after the removal of the e-levy.
“If you look at the data, more people are channelling money through the registered finance system,” he said.
Prof Quartey called for financial literacy and collaboration with telecom companies to reduce mobile money charges.
“If the government engage can them to reduce their charges, no matter how small, it makes a lot of difference. This is one of the things that we can do to reduce the amount of cash in the system that BoG must manage,” he stated.
Dr Anim-Prempeh agreed that the Central Bank’s losses were tied to inflation-fighting interventions, urging more organic stability measures.
“Now that there has been some sort of stability, you try to use more organic and natural policies to curtail inflationary pressures so that you do not overly incur operating costs,” he said.
Dr Anim-Prempeh emphasised that confidence in the financial system was critical.
“People begin to question and doubt this stabilisation effort, which means it’s purely artificial,” he cautioned, adding that reliance on heavy Central Bank spending could weaken public trust.
Dr Anim-Prempeh encouraged strengthening industry to produce exportable goods and reduce imports to ease the burden on monetary policy, describing such measures as a “realistic path to sustaining the currency.”
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey
Reporter: Francis Ntow