Finance Minister Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam has expressed gratitude to President Akufo-Addo for appointing him to such a crucial position.
He expressed his gratitude to the President when he presented before Parliament the 2024 mid-year budget review on Tuesday, July 23, 2024.
He was particularly grateful that he was appointed at a critical or crucial moment for the country.
To him, it is an honour and a privilege for him to be appointed to serve as Finance Minister.
“Mr. Speaker, I want to begin this Mid-Year Policy Review by expressing my gratitude to H.E. President and Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for appointing me to serve as the Finance Minister, especially at this critical time in our nation’s history. It is such an honour and privilege to serve in this capacity and I am grateful for the opportunity.”
He also thanked the Speaker of Parliament and MPs for their support adding that he had no idea he would one day be appointed as Minister and address the house.
“As the Member of Parliament for Karaga, and one of your own, I wish to also express my profound appreciation to you, Right Hon. Speaker and Hon. Members for the immense support I have received. I will continue to rely on the full cooperation of the House as we work to serve our country.
Growing up as a young boy in Aboabo-Tamale, it never crossed my mind that I would one day stand before you to address this august House in this capacity. The young people out there should therefore know that – IT IS POSSIBLE – with hard work, dedication, and by the Grace of God one can have the opportunity to serve this country.”
The Minister admitted that the country had gone through some challenges over the past two years. However, efforts deployed by the government had yielded positive results.
“Mr. Speaker, the last two years have been extremely challenging globally, and Ghana has not been an exception. The difficult economic environment has truly affected businesses and families, particularly the vulnerable in our society.
These challenges have severely affected households, increased the cost of living and limited the creation of job opportunities. Our young people continue to seek employment opportunities beyond what the State can provide. It has, indeed, Mr. Speaker, been a difficult time and I empathise with our entire fellow Ghanaians.
Mr. Speaker, over the last two years, Government has embarked on a number of decisive measures to get us back on the path of fiscal consolidation, economic stability and growth. I am happy to note that these policies that we have implemented are yielding the expected results.”
He continued: “Growth continues to exceed our expectations. The 4.7 percent growth rate reported by the Ghana Statistical Service for first quarter 2024 exceeds the revised target of 3.1 percent;
• Inflation is declining. End-June inflation rate of 22.8 percent, a reduction of
31 percentage points since December, 2022, confirms the target threshold of
+/-2 of 15 percent by end 2024 is possible;
• Exchange rate has largely stabilised, compared to December, 2022, despite the recent pressures. The 18.6 percent depreciation rate to the US Dollar as of June 2024, represents an improvement over the 22.0 percent recorded for the same period last year; and • Gross International Reserves reached 3.1 months of import as at end June 2024 against 2.5 months of imports in the same period last year.”
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
