Ghana's 2024 economic situation is just like every other year where prices of goods and services go higher and higher, and this is a common global economic transitional phenomenon that every country goes through.

During this said yearly economic transition, prices of everything do rise, currencies experience ups and downs, and so on. In most instances, governments cannot stop it but can manage it because years do not reverse, but rather advance, and this is characterized by a shift in the standard of living of the local people making it positive (better) or negative (worse). For example, the prices of products and services in all countries cannot be the same in 2021 as they are in 2024.

If Ghana's economy is experiencing drastic dropouts of businesses, especially foreign investments, poor standard of living, drastic increase in the prices of goods and services, and many others, which is not equitable to the global rate of economic transition, but rather to the worse (negative) and not better (positive), then immediate attention must be taken to resolve these things before it’s too late for Ghana's economy.

There are a few negative issues happening in the Ghanaian economy such as the Ghana Cedi is dropping against the US Dollar and prices of goods and services are rising at a rapid pace, making most people living in Ghana experience a poor standard of living and so on.

Some causation factors that I can suggest include:

1. Most private business transactions, including a few public transactional charges, are done in USD instead of Ghana Cedis within the country.

2. Ghana does not have appropriate and proper tax or VAT refund systems for those who pay taxes and even if not the people who live and work in Ghana, foreign and local businesses must enjoy tax refund systems.

Paying VAT/Tax is akin to extending a loan to the tax authorities, which they reimburse the interest at the conclusion of each VAT/Tax yearly cycle. This practice is a crucial economic tactic that can bolster Ghana’s economy. The absence of a VAT refund system is a significant factor in the shutdown of many international businesses, as it hinders their ability to enjoy certain investment benefits to encourage them to reinvest in the country, particularly when their revenue falls short of projections.

3. The current poor standard of people living in Ghana is the result of several minor issues ignored by every successive government. Minor issues such as rent for accommodation is not monthly charged to ease tenants' financial pressure hence they complain of hardship, no regulatory increase in salaries and wages as compared to the current rising costs of goods and services, importation of locally produced Ghanaian crops from other countries, everyone living in Ghana is too free to do anything because of democracy so the regulations are not tactically implemented to encourage the people living in Ghana to be law-abiding citizens.

Here are some inquiries that frequently crossed my mind:

How many Ghanaians have at least 100 Ghana Cedis as closing available balances in their bank accounts?

How many foreign investors in Ghana are willing to transfer huge sums of monies to their countries through legal financial institutions especially banks due to unacceptable exchange rates?

How many financial institutions are able to issue credit facilities to the Ghanaians for survival?

Had the successive governments of Ghana, from the time of independence to the present, directed greater attention to these potential factors, along with others not specified, the people living in Ghana might not express as much dissatisfaction amidst the ongoing global economic shift. Even with the Ghana Cedi’s poor performance, the people would have a stronger capacity to endure and comprehend the economic difficulties faced by the nation.

Richard Hagan quotes

"To better a country's standard of living, the laws and regulations must strategically be implemented to encourage the people to respect them and then they will automatically obey. But when people are forcibly enforced to obey the laws and regulations, they won't respect them hence the laws and regulations will not be obeyed respectfully."

Richard Hagan is recognized as an entrepreneur, political figure, scholar, philanthropist, and professional advisor on global economic strategies.