The Communications Director of the Bank of Ghana, Bernard Otabil, has clarified that the central bank enjoys a high degree of operational independence, safeguarded by strong institutional structures.

This was in response to a post shared on X (formerly Twitter) by Professor Lord Mensah insinuating that “For central bank governor to be named among politicians buying undervalued state lands once again compromises the independence of the bank. Central bank governor’s independence has a strong correlation with inflation. I am not surprised inflation climbed as high as 54.1%."

According to Mr. Otabil, “It is worrying that an attempt would be made to water down the impact of operational independence in the Bank’s policy formulation. A lack of understanding of the inflation dynamics may lead to all sorts of conclusions and conjuncture. But the Bank of Ghana is committed to pursuing policies aimed at achieving a stable level of inflation in line with the medium-term target of 8 plus/minus 2 percentage points."

"Bringing inflation down to the target level is a precondition to achieving sustainable economic growth and, over the long term, ensuring economic prosperity in Ghana and increasing welfare of the Ghanaian population. Underpinning our operational independence is transparency and accountability, and this will never be compromised to maintain public trust, and anchor inflation expectations,” Otabil explained.

Background

Recent media reports have focused on a list purported to show the Governor and the two deputies named “among beneficiaries” of state lands sold. However, this practice of the Governor and the deputies acquiring state lands through legitimate processes is not confined to the current leadership.

A thorough examination of historical records indicates that this arrangement has been a consistent feature across several decades, spanning various governments and the central bank’s leadership.

Past governors and deputy governors of the Bank of Ghana have similarly been honored with such land grants, with records of allocations dating back to the early 1990s.