The weakening of the Ghanaian cedi in comparison to the US dollar and the CFA has been lamented by members of the Importers Association in Kumasi.
In opposition to the weakening cedi, the Association has also suggested a sit-down strike.
The Kumasi Togo Agents Association, the Clothes Sellers Association, the T-shirt Sellers Association, the Material Sellers Association, and the Babies and Children Ware Association are just a few of the associations that claim that the depreciation of the cedi is having a disastrous effect on their members’ businesses.
The Deputy Secretary for the Association, Nana Yaw Owusu Agyemang, speaking to Class FM’s Elisha Adarkwah, Monday, October 24, explained that: “The inflation of the cedi to CFA ration, is affecting our business because when you look at two weeks ago, the rate of the CFA was GHS16.30 but as of last week, it was 18.40 so you can strike a difference of 2.10ps, so assuming you convert 1 million CFA, you’ll be paying a difference of GHS2100 but if you sit down and sell the goods too, your profit will not accumulate to GHS2100.”
The Deputy Secretary indicated that the Association will stop the importation of goods for two weeks in protest against the falling cedi.
“So it means you’re running at a loss and in business too we run for profit or we run a business to maintain our capital but at this moment we’re running at a loss, all our capitals are [going] into [the] ditch,” he said.
“So we have also decided that we’re taking two weeks strike, a sit-down strike. We’re sitting down for two weeks, we’re not importing any goods from any neighbouring countries using the CFA and the dollar because the inflation is killing us, it’s collapsing all our finances,” the Deputy Secretary of the Association stated.