Lands and Natural Resources Minister, Samuel Abu Jinapor, has lauded Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia as the key to Ghana’s economic prosperity in 2025.
He stated that Bawumia’s leadership, building on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s achievements, will unleash prosperity when he is voted President of Ghana.
Contributing to the parliamentary debate on the 2024 Budget on Thursday, Jinapor stressed that the Vice President’s distinguished role in initiating and implementing the gold for oil policy solved Ghana’s perennial petroleum import challenges.
According to him, this policy not only addressed foreign exchange scarcity but also bolstered the gold reserves of the Bank of Ghana.
The gold for oil program, he claims, significantly reduced fuel prices, stabilized the exchange rate, and showcased Bawumia’s capacity for effective decision-making in governance in times of crisis.
He said, “Until the introduction of the gold for oil programme, the Bank of Ghana’s reserves when it comes to gold was totally insignificant.”
“However, through the domestic gold purchase programme, today we can proudly say that the reserves of the Bank of Ghana have been shored up, which culminated in the gold for oil programme.”
According to him, over 800,000 metric tonnes of crude oil, almost 30% of the national crude oil consumption was purchased through the policy without having to look for scarce foreign exchange to import crude oil into the country.
This, he said, is an outstanding intervention with positive consequences that have been captured in the budget statement.
He disclosed that through the domestic gold purchase programme, the Bank of Ghana has purchased a total amount of 17.89 tons, corresponding to US$1.140 billion to boost its gold reserve.
Abu Jinapor indicated that since the inception of the gold for oil programme, 23 cargoes have been imported into the country and that the plan is to cover 50% of the national consumption from 30%.
That, he said, has resulted in a reduction in fuel prices in the country.
He argued that in November 2022, the exchange rate stood at GH¢17, however, by November 2023, the exchange rate had dropped to GH¢12 as a result of this gold-for-oil intervention.
According to him, this policy was implemented by the Vice President adding, “That is why I salute him for coming up with this policy.
“Governance is about ideas. Governance is about thinking through the issues. Governance is about effective implementation and Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia has done all through his public life and has demonstrated that he has the capacity to make the right decisions,” he stated