Haruna Iddrisu, the Minister of Education, has said Ghana’s economy under the Akufo-Addo gov’t went into an abyss.
The Education Minister stressed that the Akufo-Addo administration caused long-term damage to Ghana’s economy.
According to Haruna Iddrisu, Ghana’s economic challenges deepened significantly in 2022.
Speaking in an interview on Channel One TV’s The Point of View, Haruna Iddrisu stated, “The Akufo-Addo government did long-term damage to the economy. If you want to do an assessment from 2022, the economy of Ghana went into an abyss. It will take some time to redress the structural imbalance and some of the problems visited on the Ghanaian economy”.
“Not just COVID-19, but you have an economy where inflation was 54 per cent, coming down to 23 per cent. You have an exchange rate regime of a dollar to the cedi between GH¢16. That is unacceptable; it increased the cost of doing business and crushed the private sector,” Mr Iddrisu said.
He added, “The private sector is more or less experiencing a rebirth of opportunity with the return of President John Dramani Mahama. That is part of the gains of the Reset Agenda. They are now beginning to find their feet and to make contributions to the sustainable development of the country”.
Meanwhile, former President John Agyekum Kufuor has vented his disappointment and frustration with the Akufo-Addo-led New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration.
John Agyekum Kufuor highlighted that the Akufo-Addo government started promising in 2016, but after the COVID-19 pandemic, the government performed poorly.
According to John Agyekum Kufuor, the Akufo-Addo government, after COVID, was doing things he did not understand.
He revealed that the Akufo-Addo-led New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration. Implemented policies without consulting him.
The former President Kufuor added that Akufo-Addo’s leadership style contributed to the NPP’s defeat in the 2024 general election.
Speaking in an interview with Deloris Frimpong Manso, shared on X on December 6, 2025, former President Kufuor explained. “During the 2016 election, they rode on my achievements to win power, but after they came into government, things changed… They started very well, but when COVID-19 came, things began to shift. I will commend him for how he handled the COVID-19 pandemic, but afterwards, I didn’t understand many of the things they were doing.
Things like the bond market and the National Cathedral… They didn’t consult me. All I knew was that they were building it. I initially thought it was a private initiative, only to later realise they were using government resources. They even demolished the judges’ building for it, and yet they still couldn’t complete it. Also, with the PDS”, he said.
Former President John Agyekum Kufuor further touched on the NPP defeat in the 2024 election, “In 2016, we won the election with a landslide victory. In the 2020 elections, there were tensions which led to a hung parliament; the president got a majority, but it was a reduced majority. Then four years later it should be that you cannot take the Ghanaian electorate for granted”.
He further advised the NPP to be united and true to themselves, adding that truth and transparency will help the party return to power.
“They should stay true to themselves. They may not all be friends, but since they are bonded by the party’s principles, when it comes to the work, we should present a united front. That is what Ghanaians want”, he added.