Economist and senior lecturer at the University of Cape Coast, Professor John Gatsi has predicted economic hardship in the first quarter of 2023.
In an interview with Citi TV journalist, Umaru Sanda on Eyewitness News, Prof. Gatsi projected that inflation for the month of January is expected to rise above the December 2022 inflation rate of 54.1 percent.
He warned Ghanaians to brace themselves up for high prices of general goods as a result of the government’s “implementation of policies that have cost implications.”
“We expect inflation for January [2023] to inch up because of policy implications. We have pushed VAT up, we have enhanced the e-levy, and then we have also enhanced taxes at the port and all these things have cost implications and price development implications for the economy,” he said.
He asserts that the mentioned factors will push up the prices of general staples, reducing Ghanaians’ purchasing power.
The Ghana Statistical Service projected December 2022 inflation at 54.1 percent, up from 50.3 percent in November.
Prof Gatsi predicted that “things will be difficult for the first quarter of 2023 until the major factors implemented to reduce high inflation start responding and we import less.”
He also emphasized that while Ghana is on the verge of securing an IMF loan facility, the euphoria and misconception that things will soon improve is a fabrication designed to console Ghanaians.
“I don’t think there is anyone that expects that things will look good in the first quarter of 2023. Things will look rough and when the IMF deal is signed somewhere in April, then we will begin to see how things will look but as it is now, things do not imply that the economy will look good in the first quarter,” he added.
