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Private sector will be empowered under NPP - Nana Addo

Nana Addo said the party will empower the private sector as a whole, and the small business sector in particular, to drive Ghana towards economic prosperity

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He said businesses in Ghana are saddled with many challenges, including the high cost of capital, high cost of doing business, the depreciation of the cedi, and the high cost of electricity and unreliable power supply, which have led to the collapse of many businesses across the county.

He made this known addressing an extraordinary general meeting of the Association of Small Scale Industries (ASSI) in Tamale, on Monday, August 8, 2016.

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The flagbearer noted the party will empower the private sector as a whole, and the small business sector in particular, to drive Ghana towards economic prosperity, the generation of jobs and a rapid rise in the living standards of the Ghanaian people.

Lending rates, according to Akufo-Addo, are currently hovering around 35%, with some microfinance operators, who are largely responsible for lending to micro and small scale enterprises, charging between 50 to 70% interest on their loans. Businesses, the NPP flagbearer added, are, therefore, constrained from making the required investments that will grow their businesses and create jobs.

To this end, Nana Addo indicated his government will bring down interest rates to affordable and competitive levels, by, amongst others, restoring and maintaining macroeconomic stability through fiscal discipline.

“In this regard, we will pass a Fiscal Responsibility Act and reduce government borrowing to make more money available for banks to lend to the private sector to reduce interest rates. Fiscal discipline will also result in a reduction of government borrowing and a crowding in of the private sector,” he assured.

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Additionally, the formalization of the Ghanaian economy, through the establishment of a national database, using the National Identification System as the primary identifier, with linkages to the databases of institutions such as the Police, NHIS, Passport Office, Immigration, Courts, Ghana Revenue Authority, and DVLA, Akufo-Addo said, will be done.

This, according to Nana Akufo-Addo, will facilitate the movement from cash payments to mainly electronic payments through bank accounts, and for financial inclusion purposes, adding that “the goal of financial inclusion is to make sure most of the bankable public have bank accounts. This will increase the supply of savings into the financial system and result in the reduction of interest rates.”

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