<<Print>>

President John Mahama has assured Ghanaians that the current challenges facing the economy would be over by next year. The President is basing his prediction on some programs government itself is undertaking as well as an International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme which is expected to take off next year. Inflation has hit a five-year high, cost of credit is currently hovering around 35%, while Ghana's public debt has hit levels which could see the country going back to HIPC. But speaking on Al- Jazeera news network, the President said Ghanaians have every reason to expect better times, come 2015. �I believe that the worse is over; things should get better. Inflation is expected to start declining from early next year and by end next year we are going to be at a better place than we are this year.� The President hinted that while it is looking to the IMF, government is undertaking social intervention programmes to help improve the lives of the citizenry. Meanwhile, President Mahama insists that there will be no freeze on public sector wages as part of the IMF conditions for a bailout programme. �Increase in the payroll has been one of the problems we are grappling and it is a factor which has brought where we are, but it is not about a freeze it is about making the pay rise predictable over the three years. �So we�re looking to negotiate what those increases would be so that it makes it predictable � how government�s expenditure is going to go but I think that is something we can deal with,� he continued. - See more at: http://myjoyonline.com/news/2014/December-15th/economic-challenges-to-end-by-2015-president-mahama-assures.php#sthash.O8tf4KFY.dpuf