Our economy functioned better under Bawumia — Danquah Institute

The Danquah Institute, which is a research think tank associated with the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), has claimed that the Ghanaian economy performed better under the leadership of Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia in 2017 compared to the previous four years.

According to a Graphic Online report, the local economy witnessed an average growth rate of 3.9% between 2013

Read full articleand 2016, but it increased to an average growth rate of 5.3% between 2017 and 2020.

During a press briefing on the performance of the NPP government last Tuesday, Dr Frank Bannor, a development economist and Head of Research at the Danquah Institute, stated that the Ghanaian economy experienced significant growth from 3.37% in 2016 to 8.13% in 2017.

He also acknowledged that the 2017 economic growth was primarily influenced by the oil sector, as was the case back in 2011. However, he highlighted that the non-oil sector growth rate was 4.9% in 2017, indicating positive growth from 2016.

Dr Bannor further revealed that the robust GDP growth performance was supported by a substantial increase in agricultural GDP growth, which rose from an average of 2.9% between 2013 and 2016 to an average of 6% between 2017 and 2022.

However, he pointed out that the COVID-19 pandemic had a devastating effect on the Ghanaian economy, causing growth to plummet to 0.51% in 2020, which was the lowest growth rate since 1983.

According to Dr Bannor, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Ghanaian economy, along with the effect of the Russia-Ukraine war on the global economy in 2020 and 2022, could not be underestimated.

He emphasized that as researchers, they would continue to highlight the fact that these two events should not be taken lightly.

Dr Bannor maintained that the data indicated that the NPP had a better track record of performance than the opposition National Democratic Congress, and thus, they were better managers of the economy.

He also stated that conducting detailed analysis and research-based discussions would offer Ghanaians a better understanding of issues of national interest.

The Danquah Institute intends to make such media encounters a regular feature of their activities ahead of this year’s general election, with the hope of supporting the NPP's campaign and Vice President Bawumia.