Ghana Urged to Rethink Inflation-Focused Policy Framework – TUC

Kwabena Otoo, Deputy Secretary-General of the Trades Union Congress Ghana, has called for a shift in Ghana’s economic policy approach, warning that an overreliance on inflation targeting is constraining efforts to address unemployment and drive inclusive growth.

Speaking in an interview on Channel One TV, Otoo argued that the country’s monetary policy framework remains narrowly focused on price stability, with the Bank of Ghana primarily using interest rate adjustments as its key policy tool.

“The current approach is largely centred on inflation targeting, which limits the scope of policy impact,” he said, noting that the framework traces its origins to the model first adopted by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, where price stability was historically the sole mandate.

Otoo emphasised that such a singular focus sidelines critical development priorities, particularly job creation, and risks weakening the broader economic impact of policy decisions.

He pointed to global shifts in central banking mandates, highlighting reforms in New Zealand, where legislation was amended in 2019 to incorporate employment generation alongside price stability. Similar dual-mandate approaches, he noted, have been adopted in other economies, including the United States.

According to him, Ghana must recalibrate its policy framework to reflect a more balanced approach that integrates employment objectives with inflation control.

Without such reforms, he cautioned, economic policy risks remaining disconnected from the country’s labour market realities and inclusive growth ambitions.