Ghana’s Finance Minister, Mr Seth Terpker has asked governments to attach a lot of importance to transparency in how they come by data and how they use same.
According to the Minister, countries which are committed to regional integration cannot do without data.
“In Ghana, we know how capital markets react to newly available information about our economy; that is why we have pursued greater data transparency, including through our participation in the IMF’s General Data Dissemination System (GDDS),” Mr Tepker told a meeting of representatives of African countries, finance outfits and development partners in Accra.
The event was a conference under the aegis of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) dubbed “enhanced data for better macroeconomic policies.”
Mr Terkper pointed out that while government had developed detailed plans for statistical improvements that are posted on the IMF’s Data Dissemination Bulletin Board, “we look forward to hearing from others that have taken the first step toward enhancing such participation with greater transparency.
“Our experience with rating agencies and the issuing of sovereign bonds on the international capital market tells me that more transparency will eventually provide dividends, including facilitating government borrowing and lowering costs,” he added.
The Minister hoped that participants would learn from each other on the challenges and success stories on how data was made more accurate and how those data have been useful in improving policies.
“The rich diversity of our experiences, collectively, can tell us what kinds of data are the most important, where we can focus our energies to make those data better, where the most serious challenges and bottlenecks are, and how we can improve the ways we use those data to make the best policy decisions possible,” he observed.
To be able to appreciate the role data plays in the scheme of things, the Minister called on the IMF to continue to provide assistance to countries that are yet to gain the desired expertise on data usage.
“With its considerable technical expertise , the IMF which has been providing technical assistance and training to all of us in the many domains of macroeconomic and financial statistics, such as national accounts, price statistics, government finance, monetary and external sector statistics, and increasingly also on how to disseminate those data must be at arm’s length,” he concluded.
Source: The Finder
| Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. |
