Change Your Consumption Patterns in Order To Stabilise The Cedi

Alhaji A.B.A. Fuseini, Deputy N/R Minister

The Deputy Northern Regional Minister Alhaji A.B.A. Fuseini has reiterated calls on Ghanaians to change their consumption patterns which are hugely in favour of foreign products and come with a high demand for foreign currencies thereby leading to the depreciating value of the country’s local currency. 

“I wish to remind Ghanaians that this is not the first time that the cedi is losing its value against major currencies. You will all recall that it got so bad that we had to do redenomination in 2007”, he said.

Speaking at an official ceremony to inaugurate one of the new branches of UniBank Ghana Limited in Tamale, Alhaji Fuseini noted that, the sustainable solution to the seemingly intractable problem facing the Ghana cedi is for all citizens to change their taste towards imported goods and patronize locally made goods.

The call for change in consumption patterns in favour of local products and substitutes, he observed, cannot be achieved by government through legislation. “It can only be achieved by the willingness of Ghanaians to be patriotic as is obtained in other parts of the world”, he maintained.

He further stated that, the local currency is going through challenges of not holding grounds against major currencies, forcing government to announce measures to arrest the situation saying “….the measures are in the best interest of the economy and the generality of the Ghanaian population. The measures need the support of all especially our financial institutions to make the desired impact”.

While lauding the efforts by management of UniBank to open a branch in Tamale to enable them do business with citizens, the Deputy Northern Regional Minister also challenged them to consider ameliorating the plight of the people in the areas of sanitation and access to clean water.

Overall, UniBank has a total of twenty-five branches operating in seven regions of the country. The inauguration of the Tamale branch which started business operations about a year ago is part of its drive to extend products and services throughout the country.

The Chief Executive Officer of UniBank Ghana Felix Nyarko-Pong said the presence of the bank in the Northern Regional capital is to nurture and grow Small Medium Enterprises into giants that can propel the country’s economy to greater heights.

“We are here to inject new life into the vibrant and industrious business environment of Tamale. The unique brand, UniBank, is here to change the lives of the people of Tamale. We are also here to partner all shades of businesses in this municipality, including shops, stores, educational institutions and markets”, he declared.

UniBank is one of the few if not the only privately wholly owned Ghanaian indigenous bank that has refused to partner or form a merger with any foreign bank when the Bank of Ghana directed all banks operating in the country to recapitalize. Since its operations in 2001, it has grown so fast and won about twenty-five awards from corporate initiative Ghana and other international bodies.