President John Dramani Mahama has set an exchange rate target for the Bank of Ghana after admitting that the Central Bank had intervened in the foreign exchange market, which temporarily strengthened the cedi.

At his maiden press briefing at the Jubilee House on Wednesday night, President Mahama said the Central Bank’s intervention was intended to halt the rapid depreciation of the cedi. However, he noted that the intervention also led to an overvaluation of the currency, which he described as concerning. He explained that this was the reason for the withdrawal of the intervention, to allow the cedi to find its natural value.

“I believe it was about stopping the rapid depreciation of the currency. When you have steep depreciation, like we experienced in 2024 — 25% in just the first half of the year — it makes planning difficult. And so yes, the Bank of Ghana was intervening in the forex market, but they have now withdrawn,” President Mahama said, confirming the Central Bank’s decision.

The President noted that following the withdrawal, the cedi is adjusting, and assured that government will introduce measures to contain the current depreciation.

Among the measures announced was a target set for the Bank of Ghana.

“The cedi is making an adjustment and I believe it will settle at a certain rate. We will make sure that any depreciation in the value of the cedi stays within about 5% per annum,” President Mahama said.

Sceptics, however, have expressed doubts about the feasibility of the President’s directive to the Central Bank.