Deputy Minister of Finance, Dr. Stephen Amoah, has stated that the pressure on the local currency could be attributed to the exchange of the cedi for major trading currencies, especially the dollar, for foreign travels.

According to him, if Ghanaians patronize the various hospitality services and tourist sites established locally, all monies would be retained here for the development of the country.

Speaking at the second CEO's Breakfast Meeting held in Accra on Thursday, May 16, 2024, Dr. Amoah also urged owners of these hospitality businesses and tourist sites to expand their operations and attract locals to patronize their services.

On the international front, he said businesses need to have a competitive advantage over other countries to also attract some Foreign Direct Investments.

"I think the strategic actors and players in tourism in Ghana should do their best to attract more tourists within the sub-region... we need to also create the needed competitiveness...," he said.

Dr. Stephen Amoah added, "We need to build homegrown policy tools that specifically address our needs... It's not every day that we have to go to the Maldives... let's come home. The monkeys are there... we always talk about the cedi; if you exchange dollars and go there [outside Ghana], why won't the cedi suffer? But if we stay here and the dollar people come here, there will be a demand for our currency."

He disclosed that the government was looking forward to taking the tourism sector to another level if the governing New Patriotic Party wins the general elections on December 7, 2024.

Meanwhile, the cedi currently sells at GH¢15 at various forex bureaus, with the inflation rate pegged at 25.0%.

Bloomberg has predicted that the value of the cedi will depreciate further by the end of the year.

SA/MA