By D. I. Laary
Koforidua, June 22, GNA – The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has intensified efforts to deepen public understanding of monetary policy, exchange rates, inflation and reserve management, urging journalists to help combat misinformation through accurate and responsible financial reporting.
Officials of the central bank said misconceptions about exchange rate movements, inflation, gold reserves and central bank finances often distort public discourse and market expectations.
The Bank’s officials were speaking in Koforidua during a four-day media capacity-building programme organised by the Bank of Ghana for journalists in the Eastern, Ashanti, Central, and Volta regions.
The programme aimed to strengthen participants’ understanding of central banking operations and enhance economic and financial journalism.
Addressing participants, Mr Bernard Ato Otabil, Director of Communications at the BoG, described misinformation and disinformation as major threats to economies, businesses and societies, reminding journalists that markets and investors relied heavily on information when making decisions.
“Economies move on information. Markets move on information. If you put out wrong information, an investor or a fund manager sitting somewhere acts on that information thinking he is making an informed decision. If it turns out to be wrong, people lose money and confidence,” he said.
Mr Otabil noted that the rapid spread of information through both traditional and digital media made accuracy more important than ever.
“When you put something wrong out there and people pick it up, it is gone. When you later issue a correction, it does not follow the same path as the original misinformation,” he said.
He cited the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Reports which consistently identified misinformation and disinformation as among the major global risks likely to affect economies and societies.
“Misinformation and disinformation have become a very big threat,” he said.
Mr Otabil explained that journalists played a critical role in shaping public understanding and opinion because they served as multipliers of information.
“We cannot reach everybody on our own. Through your various platforms, people are able to make informed decisions. The information you put out shapes lives, shapes businesses and shapes the country,” he stated.
He said central banks are not speculative institutions and should not be viewed as entities seeking profits from trading activities.
Commenting on Ghana’s gold reserve strategy, Mr Otabil said the increase in gold holdings from 8.74 tonnes in 2021 to 40.85 tonnes reflected deliberate reserve diversification and risk management measures.
He explained that the strategy had strengthened Ghana’s reserve position, reduced dependence on foreign currencies and enhanced resilience during periods of economic uncertainty.
According to him, reserve management decisions, including occasional gold sales, involved reallocating assets rather than reducing reserves.
“It is not a decrease in reserves. It is a transfer from one asset class into another class which is more liquid and more readily manageable,” he stressed.
On Ghana’s foreign exchange market, Ms Akua Afriyie Nettey, Head of the Foreign Exchange Market Intelligence and Compliance Unit at the Financial Markets Department of BoG, said exchange rate movements were influenced by demand and supply conditions, economic fundamentals, political developments and market expectations.
“Whatever happens in other parts of the world, whether we like it or not, impacts the movement of the exchange rate,” she said, citing geopolitical tensions, rising commodity prices and global investor behaviour.
Ghana’s political stability, she said, had also contributed positively to exchange rate stability over the years, adding: “We are blessed to have a stable change of government over the years. It is good for our currency and good for the country.”
Ms Nettey cautioned against speculative commentary and unverified claims about the cedi, saying such narratives could trigger unnecessary demand for foreign currency.
“Every forex bureau you call tells you, ‘they say the rate is going up.’ Who are they?” she quizzed.
She urged journalists to provide factual and balanced reporting rather than statements that could provoke panic in the market.
“It is important that in your reporting and engagement, you give out the facts and not blanket statements that provoke panic,” she stressed.
Responding to questions on the parallel market, Ms Nettey said the Bank’s focus remained on maintaining stability in the formal interbank market where most foreign exchange transactions occurred, adding that the central bank does not regulate the black market, which is an illegal activity.
She explained that registered forex bureaus accounted for only a small share of the total foreign exchange market, with the bulk of transactions taking place through banks.
Ms Nettey further clarified that Ghana operated a managed float exchange rate regime and that the Bank of Ghana did not arbitrarily determine exchange rates.
“We do not invent the exchange rate,” she said. “It is based on actual trades conducted by banks and their customers. We compile the data, calculate the weighted median and publish the rate as a guide for the market.”
A major area of discussion during the programme centred on public perceptions of the Bank’s balance sheet and financial performance.
Dr Providence Boateng Mireku, Head of the Balance of Payments Office at the Research Department, said the central bank’s mandate should be assessed primarily on its ability to maintain price stability rather than profitability.
“If we posted huge profits and inflation was 20 or 40 per cent, would Ghanaians clap for us?” he asked.
He said the financial costs incurred during periods of economic crisis, including interventions to support economic recovery and secure an IMF-supported programme, should be viewed within the context of the Bank’s statutory mandate.
Mr Stephen Acheampong, Head of the Monetary Policy and Strategic Communications Office at the Communications Department, urged journalists to interpret central bank financial statements within the context of the institution’s unique mandate.
“The central bank is not set up to make a profit. Its objective is the public good and maintaining price stability,” he said.
He explained that its financial statements must be viewed and understood differently from those of commercial institutions because central banks exist primarily to promote economic stability rather than to maximise shareholder returns.
Earlier, Mr Stephen A. Darko-Koranteng, Eastern Regional Chairman of the Ghana Journalists Association, said journalists had a responsibility to ensure accuracy, context and integrity in financial reporting.
“When we get inflation, interest rates or cedi performance wrong, markets move and livelihoods shake,” he said, adding that “Diligent, factual financial reporting is patriotism.”
The BoG announced plans to deepen engagement with journalists through expanded access to monetary policy briefings, interactions with digital content creators and the introduction of a Governor’s Award for Economic and Financial Journalist of the Year.
GNA
Edited by Lydia Kukua Asamoah
Reporter: D.I. Laary
[email protected]