The Bank of Ghana has reported a staggering loss of approximately 60 billion Ghanaian cedis, equivalent to $5.2 billion or £4.3 billion, for the 2022 financial year, as disclosed by the BBC.
This revelation has ignited a wave of protests throughout Ghana’s capital, Accra, demanding the resignation of the Bank of Ghana’s Governor, Ernest Addison, and his deputies.
Ghana’s opposition party
The demonstration, known as #OccupyBoG, was orchestrated by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) party.
Participants, donned in red shirts, scarves, and berets, voiced their frustration through spirited chants and carried banners, some of which bore the straightforward message, “Stop the looting, we are suffering.”
In an interview with the BBC, Professor Godfred Bokpin of the University of Ghana expressed his astonishment, stating, “We have never seen anything like this in our history.
If the Bank of Ghana wants to recover from this loss… it will take them more than 45 years.”
Ghana, once heralded as an economic success story in Africa, now finds itself mired in one of the most severe financial crises in generations.
Inflation has surged to nearly 50%, although it has moderated slightly to 40.1%, and the country is burdened with a substantial debt of $55 billion.
Consequently, Ghana is projected to allocate approximately 70% of its revenue to debt servicing moving forward, further exacerbating its financial challenges.