President Mahama Flags $42bn Suspicious Import Outflows Through Banks
President John Dramani Mahama has revealed that more than $42bn exited the country over the past four years through payments for imports that never arrived, warning of large-scale abuse of the foreign exchange system at a time of renewed strain on the cedi.
Speaking at a media encounter at Jubilee House on Wednesday, Mahama said investigations revealed a pattern in which companies secured foreign exchange from commercial banks ostensibly to pay for goods, but failed to deliver them into Ghana. “Over the period of four years, about $42bn was taken out of this country without the corresponding imports,” he said. He added that some banks had already been sanctioned and that individuals would soon be interrogated, with the prospect of further penalties if wrongdoing was confirmed.
The remarks come against a backdrop of heightened volatility in the cedi, which has swung sharply against the US dollar in recent months. Mahama noted that while the currency had appreciated strongly earlier this year, the move produced distortions. Importers took advantage of cheaper dollars, fuelling an exponential rise in imports, while exporters saw reduced earnings in local currency terms. At the same time, remittance inflows fell by about 50 per cent, as diaspora Ghanaians delayed sending funds in expectation that the cedi’s strength would reverse.
Mahama also pointed to irregularities in the activities of money transfer companies, which he said collected dollars abroad but failed to repatriate them into the country.
In a bid to restore balance, the president confirmed that the Bank of Ghana had halted its interventions in the foreign exchange market, allowing the cedi to adjust naturally after a period of steep depreciation. He forecast that the currency would settle at a sustainable level, with any further weakening capped at about 5 per cent annually.
“A strong cedi is good for all of us,” Mahama said, underscoring the need to safeguard Ghana’s currency as the government works to stabilise the economy.
