Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has dismissed the Finance Minister’s newly announced accelerated reserve accumulation policy, insisting that Ghanaians are more concerned about jobs than macroeconomic projections.
His comments follow a statement by the Minister for Finance, Cassiel Ato Forson, who told Parliament on Wednesday, February 25, 2026, that the government intends to increase Ghana’s international reserves to cover 15 months of imports by the end of 2028.
According to Dr. Ato Forson, the accelerated reserve accumulation policy is designed to safeguard macroeconomic stability while supporting long-term structural transformation of the economy.
However, responding on the floor of Parliament, Mr Afenyo-Markin rejected the focus on what he described as economic theorising.
“The finance minister came here to talk to us about some 15-month import cover; we are not interested in his economic theories,” he said.
The Minority Leader argued that Parliament and the Ghanaian public expect concrete updates on employment generation, particularly the government’s “one job, three shifts” promise.
“The finance minister must know that this House is not interested in his new theories. The people of Ghana, starting from the youth, want to know, you promised them one job, three shifts. I expect you as a finance minister to come to this House to address efforts you are making to implement that. It has been one year; give us data on the number of people you have been able to employ under this promise,” he stated.
He further criticised the timing of the policy announcement.
“You come to this House to tell us about a 15-month import cover when your people have no jobs,” he added.
Gov’t targets 15-month import cover by 2028 under new reserve plan
