Executives of the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) will hold an emergency meeting to deliberate on the new forex regime outlined by the Bank of Ghana to tame the cedi?s depreciation.
A source at the chamber told B&FT the executive committee will be meeting to discuss implications of the new forex rules on industry. The central bank after an emergency Monetary Policy Committee meeting last week announced that the policy rate has been increased from 16 to 18 percent — the highest in four years — as part of measures to arrest the depreciating cedi.
Prior to that the bank had announced restrictions on the currency market in a bid to boost the cedi, which in the past year has lost more than a fifth of its value against the dollar. The chamber is expected to deliberate on the directive to exporters to repatriate their export earnings to their banks within 60 days of shipment, and for onward conversion of the funds to cedis within five working days.
The central bank also outlawed foreign exchange loans by domestic banks to customers who do not earn their income in foreign currency, and prohibited offshore currency dealings by resident companies. BoG Governor Dr. Kofi Wampah has defended the rules, saying they will promote transparency, streamline the market, limit leakage of foreign currency and address money-laundering concerns.
More importantly, he said, the central bank wants to stress the cedi?s status as the sole legal tender.
By Richard Annerquaye Abbey
