The Executive Secretary of the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) has called on the government to prioritize bolstering the national currency, the Cedi, as a strategy to reduce the prices of petroleum products.
In recent weeks, petroleum product prices have been steadily declining, but this trend took a hit with the reinstatement of the Price Stabilization and Recovery Levy.
Speaking on The Big Issue on Citi FM and Citi TV, COPEC’s Executive Secretary, Duncan Amoah, attributed the price hikes to a weaker Cedi and advised the government to focus on enhancing the currency’s strength.
“What we can do as a country at this point is really to strategize on your currency and do whatever magic that had been done because before August 2022, prices of petroleum products did hike and at a point, diesel and petrol were crossing GH¢21 and for some reasons, we were able to cool those two off.
“The Cedi had also depreciated to almost GH¢17 exchange to a Dollar and the Bank of Ghana for whatever magic, was able to reverse the depreciation back to GH¢12 and so if you have any of those things down your sleeve, there could be no better time to apply that kind of a solution than at this point when prices are simply going up daily.
“At this point, taxes cannot be taken, give or take, we cannot influence Israel on Iran, we cannot influence Ukraine from bombing Russian refineries. What we can do at this point is to ensure that your Cedi is not doing too badly as we have seen in the past few weeks.
“Once that happens, you are simply hanging yourself in the face of global market price trends and throwing your hands in despair,” Duncan Amoah stated.
Amoah emphasized the importance of strategic measures to stabilize the Cedi, citing past instances where such actions had a positive impact on fuel prices.
He mentioned that prior to August 2022, fuel prices soared, reaching over GH¢21 for diesel and petrol.
However, interventions by the Bank of Ghana managed to reverse the Cedi’s depreciation from nearly GH¢17 to GH¢12 against the Dollar.
Highlighting the current global challenges impacting petroleum prices, such as geopolitical tensions, Amoah stressed that controlling the Cedi’s performance is within the country’s reach and crucial for mitigating price fluctuations.
He concluded by urging swift action, stating, “Now is the time to implement solutions that can stabilize our currency, as relying solely on taxes or external factors beyond our control will not suffice in addressing the escalating prices of petroleum products.”