The recent stability of the Ghanaian cedi has been praised by Samson Asaki Awingobit, executive secretary of the Importers and Exporters Association of Ghana, who claims that it is reducing pricing uncertainty and lowering the cost of commodities in local marketplaces.
Awingobit clarified on Saturday, May 17, 2025, on The Big Issue on Channel One TV that the current state of the currency is drastically altering how traders do their business, particularly in important commercial centers like Abossey Okai and Okaishie.
“Gone are the days, or few weeks or few months ago, or a year ago, if one gets to shop at Abossey Okai, or at Okaishie, you will want to call Alhaji to find out how much is the rate today before you can price your goods. Because at the end of the day, if you sell two unit, three unit items, you will go and buy the dollar and put down. You will not wait for the dollar to start going up against the Cedi,” he said.
He claimed that the desperate hunt for black-market currency is progressively abating since the dollar is now available at commercial banks and the exchange rate has moved from GH¢14 to roughly GH¢12.30.
“If I were pricing my goods at GH¢20 or at GH¢15 because dollar was GH¢14 and now dollar has come to GH¢12.3… nobody will go to Alhaji to look for forex to be able to do his transaction. It is a good thing, and it will reflect in the prices of goods and services,” he added.
He revealed that some prices are already falling, citing a personal example to underscore the impact: “Just two, three days ago, my wife told me that the Frytol that they used to buy at GH¢1,200 or GH¢1,300 or so, it has come to GH¢600 or GH¢700. That is drastic drop of goods in the market.”
Awingobit’s remarks support the rising demand that the government build on the progress made in achieving currency stability and make sure that both people and companies benefit from it.