Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, the Minister of Finance
Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, the Minister of Finance, has stated that the best economists in the country are market women.
He made this assertion on JoyNews’ PM Express while discussing a number of factors that influenced the details of the 2025 Budget he presented to Parliament on Tuesday, March 11, 2025.
According to him, traders are the best economists because they handle a broad system of buying and selling fraught with a lot of complexities, and yet they manage to thrive.
“The best economists in this country are market women. They have tried it, they’ve tested it, and they have been successful at it. So, to me, they are the best economists you can ever see around,” he said.
He indicated that the budget, which was presented under the theme: “Resetting the Ghana We Want,” was developed based on feedback from a broader consultation of stakeholders drawn from the National Economic Forum, traders, as well as think tanks.
Quizzed on why he specifically chose to visit Makola Market to sample views ahead of the 2025 Budget presentation, he indicated that during prior consultation, one question stood out strongly.
“The question that kept coming up was how the government is going to address the needs of the people.
“We held series of meetings to ascertain the needs of the people. Then His Excellency, John Mahama, said I should engage further. I thought we should engage practitioners beyond think tanks and high-level experts, so, I decided to go down to the very basics. That is why I decided to visit the Makola Market,” he said.
The finance minister indicated that he was surprised by the extent to which the female-dominated traders perfectly understood how the exchange rate directly impact price stability.
“What strongly stood out for me on my visit to Makola Market is the fact that most of the business owners were women,” he added.
He also explained that the traders shared that their major problem had to do with the exchange rates.
According to the traders, if the government is able to stabilise the Ghana cedi as promised, they will be able to address the erratic price hikes of their goods.
VPO/AE
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