Accra, Dec. 18, GNA \u2013 President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo Sunday pushed\u00a0manufacturers, traders, and transport operators to reduce the prices of goods\u00a0and \u00a0 services as the Cedi firmed against major trading currencies.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI appeal to manufacturers, traders, and transport operators, who at the height of\u00a0the Cedi\u2019s recent depreciation increased prices of goods and services to reduce\u00a0their prices now that the Cedi is regaining much of its strength.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe this is not only a fair request but also a just one\u2026 I urge all of you to join\u00a0me in the clarion call so that at the very least, we can have a more pleasant\u00a0Christmas,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The President made the call at a special service to climax activities to mark the\u00a0Centenary Anniversary celebration of the Ga Presbytery of the Presbyterian\u00a0Church of Ghana at the Independence Square in Accra.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The occasion was on the theme: \u201cGrateful for our Heritage, Forging Ahead in\u00a0Unity and Faith.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The President told the gathering that the strengthening of the Cedi \u201chas not\u00a0happened by Chance,\u201d but through the implementation of deliberate policies by\u00a0the Government in collaboration with the Bank of Ghana.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Those interventions include Cedi liquidity tightening measures resulting in the\u00a0offloading of forex as a store of value by speculators, the improvement of forex\u00a0inflows from remittances and the mining sectors, and the reaching of the staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund for a three-billion-dollar\u00a0packagers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAll these have combined to bring the Cedi to an improved position, and I can\u00a0assure you that the government will continue to work hard to maintain and\u00a0sustain the gains made,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Cedi appreciated 47 percent against the dollar and gained on all other\u00a0currencies as of Friday\u2019s close.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Noting that the country was not out of the woods, President Akufo-Addo said the\u00a0government was determined to implement the appropriate policy measures to\u00a0consolidate and sustain the gains made by the cedi in recent times.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWith appropriate policy, determination and hard work on our part, things are\u00a0begging to turn around; what seemed impossible yesterday is now becoming\u00a0possible.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are definitely not yet out of the woods, however today, the Cedi is rapidly\u00a0appreciating against the US dollar and all major currencies, making up for its\u00a0losses and the price of petroleum products are reducing at the pump.\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The President disclosed the Bank of Ghana, in the weeks ahead, would continue\u00a0the purchases of forex from the mining and oil sectors to enhance liquidity supply\u00a0to the market.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Bank would also continue with the single, unified forex forward auction and\u00a0some modest targeted bilateral support to critical imports and the\u00a0implementation of the gold for oil swap transaction to significantly remove forex\u00a0pressures on the cedi.\u00a0<\/p>\n
President Akufo-Addo assured the gathering that his administration \u201cis\u00a0determined to bring even further relieve to you\u201d and return the economy to the\u00a0high rate of growth that characterized the country\u2019s development in the three\u00a0years before the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He, however, insisted that \u201cwe can only do so if we forge ahead in unity and in\u00a0faith, and have the believe that with the Almighty God, the fortunes of Ghana\u00a0under the presidency of Akufo-Addo will be restored.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI will thus appeal to you to bear with Government in this difficult period as we\u00a0work to chart a path out of the storm. I know times are hard and are affecting all\u00a0of us, but this government will not shirk its responsibility to the people of Ghana\u00a0to make the hard decisions that hard times demand, which may be painful just\u00a0like injections, but we must take them if we are to be well again and get our\u00a0economy back.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe policies we are implementing today are meant to address the challenges,\u00a0and I am sure they will, but in the meantime, I need your active understanding\u00a0and cooperation \u2026we can make it if all of us work at it,\u201d he emphasized.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The President lauded the contributions of the Presbyterian church to national\u00a0development and thanked the church for its support towards the construction of\u00a0the National Cathedral.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He stated that, upon completion, the National Cathedral would serve not only as\u00a0the country\u2019s collective thanksgiving \u201cto the Almighty for the blessings He has\u00a0bestowed on our nation, sparing us the ravages of civil war that have bedevilled\u00a0the histories of virtually all our neighbours, and the outbreak of deadly mass\u00a0epidemics, but also as a rallying point for the entire Christian Community of\u00a0Ghana, which represents 70 per cent of the population.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n
The President said although there were those who did not share his view in the\u00a0building of the Cathedral, \u201cI respect their right to differ, but I am confident in my\u00a0decision and by the vast numbers of enthusiastic supporters of these projects,\u00a0whose spiritual dimension is limitless.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He thus asked the Ga Presbytery, and all Christians, to continue to pray for\u00a0Ghana\u2019s peace and unity, so the nation can move forward in unity.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI ask all of you to continue to pray for God\u2019s peace and unity for Ghana so we can\u00a0continue to move forward as a united nation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI need the support of every Ghanaian together with the prayers of the Church, to\u00a0help me and my government carry out our mandate successfully\u2026Pray for me so\u00a0that the Almighty God will continue to give me wisdom, strength, courage, and\u00a0compassion to enable me to execute my duties as a good leader. With Him all\u00a0things are possible for the battle is the Lord\u2019s,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Moderator of the Presbyterian Church, Rt Rev Professor Joseph Obiri Yeboah\u00a0Mante, expressed the appreciation of the Church for government\u2019s effort at\u00a0restoring economic stability\u00a0<\/p>\n GNA\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/66f9bd69-0393-4541-904c-bf5410517a7a.jpeg\")
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