Public debt: Every Ghanaian owes GH¢19,000 – Mahama

The 2024 flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Mahama, has delivered a policy paper on behalf of the party at a dialogue with the Trades Union Congress (TUC) of Ghana.

John Mahama

He said every Ghanaian owes an amount of GH¢19,000 if the country’s GH¢577 billion debt is shared.

According to him, the local economy, which is plagued with high debt levels, hinders investment in social and economic development projects.

He emphasised that the collaboration between his party and the TUC is essential for achieving better economic growth, improved working conditions, and the overall well-being of Ghanaians.

The NDC, as a social democratic party, he noted, believes in balancing economic prosperity with the well-being of workers and promoting equality adding that the party will engage in an annual governance dialogue with organised labour groups, CSOs, and other recognised groups.

He stated that unlike 2016, when Ghanaians owed GH¢4,000, the amount has now ballooned under the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP).

He said the economy is plagued by high debt levels, which hinder investments in social and economic development projects. In 2016, if you shared the public debt of GH¢120 billion among 30 million Ghanaians, each Ghanaian owed GH¢4,000. Today, if you divide the debt of GH¢577 billion by 30 million Ghanaians, all of us sitting here owe GH¢19,000, coupled with a relatively higher unemployment rate, particularly amongst the youth, which exacerbates the challenges faced by our citizens.

Meanwhile, Ghana’s public debt went up by about ¢6.3 billion between April and June 2023 to reach GH¢575.5 billion in June 2023, data from the Bank of Ghana has revealed.

This is equivalent to $52.3 billion, approximately 71.9% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The marginal increase in the total debt of the country was due to the slight depreciation of the cedi to the dollar during the period.