paul a acquah : overview of the economy in ghana opening remarks by dr paul a acquah, governor of the bank of ghana, at the consultative group meeting, accra, 21 june 2006. * * * the economy is in its fifth year of deepening macroeconomic stability. indeed, it is significant that the fund staff have characterized it as a ‘ mature stabilizer ’. and the logical policy thrust is to extend this record of economic performance in the coming years and to accelerate growth. it is fair to say that this round of discussions of the consultative group is taking place against the backdrop of significantly changed economic outlook, reflecting strong fundamentals underpinned by anti - inflation focus of monetary policy and fiscal consolidation over the past five years. there is evidence that the private sector is responding positively. banks are restructuring their portfolios to increase lending to the private sector ; with inflation expectations subdued, business planning horizons are being stretched out and the rising capital inflows suggest an increasing investor appetite for risk in the domestic market. the economy seems to be at the cusp of developing in the pattern of emerging market economies. looking ahead, monetary policy and prudential supervision, along with the accompanying fiscal policy and public expenditure management, are being formulated with a commitment to maintaining financial stability to support an accelerated growth that would be broad based. and this should lock in hard - won economic gains and preserve domestic and external debt sustainability, secure good sovereign credit ratings, and the confidence of the markets and development partners. to develop an economic system for an efficient allocation of resources, there are proposed modifications to the legal and regulatory framework governing the financial system and the domestic money and capital markets. much of the necessary payments systems infrastructure are already in place, which will serve to develop efficient financial services industry and markets, which is key in emerging market economies. these structural changes will help to maintain the health and stability of the financial system. they will also improve the transmission mechanism of monetary policy actions ( e. g. the speed with which banks and the markets react to interest rate movements ). to be specific, let me indicate some of the legislation that will hopefully pass through parliament this year. these have major significance for developing a market for financial services and an economy well integrated into the global market. these include, the foreign exchange bill, which will give a de jure effect and recognition to the liberal external trade and payments regime operating in the country and remove the documentation and bureaucratic requirements associated with the exchange control

, as the sole regulator of the mobile money sector, the central bank will ensure that right things are done by the various players in the sector. we will continue to regulate and monitor activities within the space and ensure that all participants play by the rules. the bank of ghana has a key responsibility to safeguard the integrity of the financial system to underscore the trust that is central to financial deepening and development. it is therefore critical to ensure the confidentiality of transactions, privacy of data collected by operators in this space ( including personal and financial data ), the security of transactions, and smooth operations of all stakeholders and regulators providing complementary services in this space. 12. the interoperability that exist between e - zwich, bank accounts and mobile money wallets, offer participants an endless opportunity to develop various value added services to the public. let me therefore challenge fintechs to work closely with banks, non - bank financial institutions and especially rural and community banks to come out with several other products and services that will further bring banking and financial transactions closer to the public. i see endless opportunities with this financial inclusion triangle and i hope the players also realise the enormity of opportunities it presents. 13. to conclude, i wish to thank all stakeholders who in one way or the other have helped in the full implementation of the interoperability project and to say that the future of ghana ’ s financial inclusiveness and cash - lite society is well within reach. 14. thank you for the attention.