, as economic stability gains a firm hold, the private sector must reposition itself to drive the growth agenda. as noted in the 2010 budget and economic policy statement, the government will continue with the fiscal consolidation process which started in 2009 with a view to stabilizing inflation and reducing exchange rate volatilities. external sector policies will also focus on building up reserves ( which is currently at 3 months imports cover ), and reducing the current account deficit, while pursuing strategies to increase economic growth in 2010. the budget is optimistic about growth prospects in 2010 with a revised real gdp growth of 6. 5 percent compared to an initial program target of 5. 0 percent. starting from 2011, ghana will benefit from oil production which is expected to attract additional investments into the country, and boost economic growth. initial production is projected to contribute about 17 percent towards ghana ’ s gdp. accordingly, real gdp growth has been estimated to increase above 20 percent in 2011. there is a general consensus that the contribution of monetary policy is to stabilize the economy and create an enabling environment for sustainable growth in the long - run. looking forward therefore, the bank of ghana ’ s monetary policy stance will remain focused on steering the economy towards price stability whilst deepening financial intermediation processes to ensure that credit flows to the productive sectors of the economy. despite the role of monetary policy in creating an enabling environment, promoting long - term growth is a complex process and requires the support of structural reforms that seek to remove “ binding constraints ” on the business environment to ensure sustainable growth. clearly, monetary policy is limited beyond the scope of resolving structural bottlenecks that often constrain growth in the ghanaian economy. the commitment of the bank of ghana to ensure macroeconomic stability and ease credit constraints must therefore be supported by policy reforms to strengthen the investment climate, increase productivity and innovation, as well as close infrastructural gaps especially in the energy and road sectors. it is anticipated that the increased government revenues from the oil production will create the much needed fiscal space to close the country ’ s infrastructural gaps and ease some of these growth constraints. additionally, the implementation of credible fiscal consolidation policies underscored by growth - enhancing measures should provide the needed boost for the private sector and accelerate economic growth. 5. conclusion ghana ’ s economy has rebounded strongly from the instability that characterized the first half of 2009. recent trends indicate that macroeconomic stability has gained ground with declining inflation, exchange rate stability, growing

bank of ghana is confident that the actions taken in terms of recapitalisation, closure of insolvent banks and widespread regulatory reforms will gradually bringing back trust and confidence in the ghanaian banking sector. restoring the health of the banking sector 8. ladies and gentlemen, i have every reason to feel confident about gains and achievements made so far in the financial sector. the financial sector is currently healthier and better able to withstand external shocks compared to the financial sector at the beginning of 2017. it is better capitalized, liquid, profitable, and more efficient and has adequate capital buffers to enable it manage any adverse external developments. such an optimistic outlook seemed nearly impossible in 2017 when we started these reforms. 9. mr. chairman, a dynamic growth - oriented financial system must be strong, well capitalised, and effectively supervised within a fair regulatory environment in accordance with international best practices and standards. there is therefore, a huge regulatory burden on us to remain vigilant towards all forms of risks in the banking sector and to tighten our regulatory and supervisory responsibilities to continue with efforts at strengthening and stabilizing the banking industry. these reforms will ensure the safety and soundness of banks, aligning macro and micro - prudential risks to bank capital and addressing crosssectoral and cross - border risks to the industry. in other to address potential risks and to properly risk profile individual banks, we are taking steps to revise the current risk - based supervision framework in line with current developments in the global banking environment. 10. to further boost depositors ’ confidence and lock - in the reform process, the deposit insurance protection corporation ( dipc ) would become fully operational effective october 1, 2019. the deposit insurance is one of the key pillars in securing financial sector stability. as amended, the ghana deposit protection act 2016 ( act 931 ) was enacted to protect small savings from losses incurred as a result of the occurrences of an insured event such as the revocation of a deposit taking institution ’ s license. among others, the act also supports the development of a safe, sound, stable and efficient market - based financial system. in the process of operationalising the dipc, the bank has already sent letters to banks to begin a process of onboarding after agreeing on an annual premium of 0. 3 to 1. 5 percent of insurable deposits with participating institutions. the bank of ghana, which is the project implementation authority, will support the dipc for 3 years to ensure sustainability. the agreed