The Canada Ghana Chamber of Commerce (CANCHAM) has held a forum for its members to sensitise them about the implications of the 2025 Budget on their businesses.

Dubbed the “2025 Budget in Perspective”, the event brought together members of the chamber.

Two famous public speakers, Associate Professor of Finance at the University of Ghana Business School and Chief Executive Officer of Dalex Finance, shared insightful perspectives on how the private sector can navigate challenges that the national budget poses to the private sector.

Professor Bokpin, who spoke on the "2025 Budget Statement and the Future of the IMF-Support Programme", urged the private sector to hold the government accountable all the time since they contribute taxes and levies to the State

He expressed worry about the challenging business environment in Ghana, describing the high inflation of 22% and lending rates of an average of 32% as too high, creating uncertainty and affecting business planning.

 “Ghana’s inflation of 22% is too high and creates uncertainty and affects business planning. For Ghana to have an enabling business environment, we should have an interest rate of 8% or lower and repayment period of 15 years.”

He added that the growth rate of 4% is insufficient, saying the Gross Domestic Product growth that would make Ghanaians happy is 7% consistently year-on-year.

Ghana’s Biggest Challenge is Repayment of Loans – Joe Jackson

Mr. Jackson, for his part, said the biggest challenge facing the country is the repayment of huge loans.

Speaking on the "Implication of the Budget on the Private Sector", he noted that “The biggest risk lies with our huge debt. In the next three years, the government will pay 150 billion cedis as interest on domestic debt, about 11.6% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).”

“Our woes were triggered by over-borrowing. It was sad for the government to spend 47% of its tax revenue on servicing debt. The public debt was GH¢ 291 billion in 2020, approximately 76.1% of GDP, interest to interest-to-revenue ratio was 47%. That was how bad the situation was. It got worse with time, he added.

He continued that Ghana’s exchange rate problems are due to the large interest payments to external investors and, to some extent, the repatriation of dividends to foreign investors.

Show More Interest in Economy – Linda Vasnani to Members

President of CANCHAM, Linda Vasnani, urged businesses to show more interest in the performance of the economy to enable them to plan well and navigate the challenges.

She expressed the Chamber's commitment to supporting its members to grow.