The Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industries says this is the time to encourage domestic production given the global disruption of international trade resulting from COVID-19.

According to the GNCCI, “We must, continuously, find innovative ways of supporting our domestic firms. The GNCCI will continue to work with the government and other stakeholders in promoting and protecting commercial and industrial value chains in the country.”

In a statement in Ensuring Business Continuity amid the COVID-19 Pandemic, signed by its President Nana Dr Appiagyei Dankawoso I, it said the GNCCI urges the government and the Bank of Ghana to continue to work with stakeholders to ensure that the announced measures achieve their intended purpose.

The measures included a reduction in the monetary policy rate from 16% to 14.5% and a 2% reduction of interest rates on the Ghana Reference Rate; a GHS 1billion stimulus package to support businesses, more especially SMEs, and a syndication facility of GHS3 billion to support industry, especially in the pharmaceutical, hospitality, service and manufacturing sectors.

Others are a six-month moratorium of principal loan repayments for selected businesses; extension of the deadline for the filing of taxes from four months to six months after the end of the basis year, and a possible reduction in the cost of data and telecommunication to households and businesses.

The GNCCI also said the Bank of Ghana must work with the commercial banks to ensure that the reduction in policy rate actually translates into a reduction in the lending rates, thereby minimising the cost of credit to businesses.

“We all know the tenuous relationship between policy rates and lending rates. This is the time for the policy rate to be effective in affecting lending rates”, it added.

Secondly, it said the stimulus package should be linked to industrial value chains for operational resilience, adding it must be used to strengthen the backward and forward linkages necessary for industrial growth while addressing the interconnected risks within an industry.

Thirdly, it said there is also the need for further short- to medium-term strategies that deploy fiscal, monetary, tax policy (tax incentives) and trade policy to keep businesses running, prevent layoffs, and protect vulnerable workers.

Supporting the partial lockdown, it urged its members in the affected areas to adhere strictly to the government’s directives. 

“Let us all support the government’s initiatives to contain the spread of COVID-19 by adhering to the preventive measures. The Chamber urges its members and the business community to continue their voluntary contributions to the COVID-19 Fund.”