Gideon Boako questions government’s economic resilience claims after IMF exit

The Deputy Ranking Member of Parliament’s Finance Committee, Dr Gideon Boako, has criticised the government’s fiscal consolidation strategy, arguing that it has come at the expense of national development. According to the Tano North MP, the measures being implemented under the government’s economic programme do not represent effective fiscal discipline but rather a reduction in development activities. “The quality of our fiscal consolidation is also highly questionable.

It is more of development suppression than fiscal consolidation,” Dr Boako wrote in a Facebook post on Monday, August 3. He argued that while government has highlighted economic stabilisation efforts, the impact of its policies must be assessed based on how they affect businesses, households and the wider economy. Dr Boako further pointed to rising prices of key commodities, including fuel and food items, as evidence that many Ghanaians continue to face economic difficulties despite the country’s IMF programme coming to an end.

He urged a reassessment of the government’s economic approach, insisting that sustainable recovery must be measured by improvements in living conditions and expanded opportunities for citizens. The Member of Parliament for Tano North and Deputy Ranking Member of Parliament’s Finance Committee, Dr Gideon Boako, has questioned the government’s claims of building economic resilience, arguing that the completion of Ghana’s International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme has exposed underlying challenges. In a Facebook post on Monday, August 3, Dr Boako said the country’s economic situation remained fragile despite assurances from the government about recovery and stability.

After all, the much-talked-about resilience by government was just a hoax,” he stated. The former aide to the former Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, argued that the true state of the economy is reflected in the daily experiences of citizens, particularly through rising prices of essential goods and services. He cited increases in fuel prices and the cost of food items such as tomatoes as indications that economic pressures remain a major concern for households.

Dr Boako maintained that government must look beyond claims of recovery and focus on policies that deliver tangible improvements in the lives of Ghanaians. In a Facebook post on Monday, August 3, Dr Boako argued that the end of the IMF programme had revealed what he described as underlying weaknesses in the economy, questioning the government’s claims of building resilience and achieving meaningful fiscal consolidation. The former aide to the former Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, also questioned the quality of the government’s fiscal consolidation measures, arguing that they have affected development rather than strengthened the economy.

He further pointed to rising prices of essential commodities, including fuel and tomatoes, as signs of the economic pressures facing Ghanaians, insisting that these developments reflect the true state of the economy. “Fuel prices, tomato prices, and so on are really showing the skin of the economy,” he added.