Former Speaker of Parliament, Prof. Mike Oquaye has urged government to make the ban of some imported goods like rice and noodles a component of the IMF bailout proposals.

Government of Ghana has been engaging the International Monetary Fund for a credit facility to help restore the country’s economic stability.

But the former head of the legislature believes any deal that does not affect the structural challenges of the economy will be needless.

In an interview with Citi News on the sidelines of the launch of the 60th anniversary of the political science department of the University of Ghana, Prof. Mike Oquaye pushed for the protection of startups against international competition.

“The economy must be packaged in a manner that will benefit all of us. We have been to the IMF 17 times, we don’t blame anybody for our decision now. The Russia-Ukraine war is a real problem, likewise, Covid-19. So many nations are suffering as we are. And it is even tougher when a country is overly dependent on others.”

“For commodities such as flour, rice, and even noodles we depend on exports. We can only imagine what will become of us in case of a worse disaster. We need to look at banning the importation of some commodities if we are going to recover and benefit from the IMF bailout.”