As momentum builds ahead of the Finance Minister’s presentation of the 2025 Mid-Year Budget Review to parliament, economist Professor Peter Quartey is urging government to come clean on the true state of Ghana’s public finances.
The economist is calling for clarity and transparency in the Mid-Year Review, particularly in the country’s revenue performance, expenditure patterns, fiscal deficit, and arrears owed to contractors and institutions.
The Director of the Institute of Statistical Social and Economic Research (ISSER) at the University of Ghana emphasised that while signs of currency stability and declining inflation are positive, they do not present the full picture of Ghana’s economic health.
Prof. Quartey says the revenue and expenditure numbers of the state, which give a clearer picture of the fiscal health of the economy, remain unclear; hence, the Minister for Finance must present a detailed report in the mid-year review.
Amid the purported tight expenditure controls, the economist also calls for transparency on the accumulation of arrears. The review, he says, must be clear of how much the government owes contractors and other institutions.
“One major thing for me that I would like to see is our revenue expenditure numbers. So far, we don’t have much information as to how well we are doing with our fiscal deficit. And also the issue about arrears, how much we owe to contractors, how much we owe to other institutions,” he said in an interview monitored by The High Street Journal.
He cautioned that even if Ghana appears to be keeping its fiscal deficit within acceptable limits, high outstanding arrears could mask deeper economic risks.
He said, “We could have a very prudent fiscal number. But then if there’s a lot of arrears, then we have to be concerned about that. So I would want to see the numbers, the fiscal figures.”
With the Ghanaian economy still recovering from recent fiscal and debt challenges, the economist said the mid-year budget should not just trumpet macroeconomic gains, but give a full, transparent account of how revenue is being raised and spent.
He also called on government to provide an update on how it is replacing taxes that were removed earlier in the year. Prof. Quartey wants the minister to be clear whether the government has found substitutes, whether we have achieved our revenue targets. These key issues, he says, are matters that Ghanaians deserve to know.
Beyond fiscal discipline, Prof. Quartey highlighted the need for strategic investment in agriculture, which he sees as key to sustainably lowering food prices and strengthening Ghana’s food security.
“I would like to see how much we’re going to invest to stimulate agriculture so our food prices will come down,” he noted.
As anticipation builds for the mid-year budget, Prof. Quartey believes that transparency and clarity should be the guiding principle of the Minister for Finance.
He says the review must be data-driven reporting, and a clear roadmap for sustained economic recovery. For many analysts and citizens alike, the Finance Minister’s report must do more than highlight success stories, it must provide answers, clarity, and evidence of true progress.
