The State of Our Economy

THE STATE OF OUR ECONOMY

Speech Delivered by:

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia 2012 NPP Vice-Presidential Candidate

At the: Ferdinand O. Ayim Memorial Lecture May 2, 2012 Accra

Mr. Chairman, H.E. John Agyekum Kufuor, Former President of the Republic of Ghana H.E. Alhaji Aliu Mahama, Former Vice President of the Republic of Ghana Presidential Candidate of the New Patriotic Party, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo Honourable Members of Parliament Chiefs and Traditional Leaders Members of the Diplomatic Corps Representatives of other Political Parties Members of the Media Distinguished Invited Guests Fellow Ghanaians Ladies and Gentlemen

Good evening!

I would like to thank all of you for making the time from your busy schedules to be present at this year’s Ferdinand Ayim Memorial Lecture. This is my first major public statement since being selected by Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo (with the support of the National Council of the NPP) as his running mate for the December 2012 Presidential elections. I want to take this opportunity to express my profound gratitude and appreciation to Nana Akufo-Addo for the honour of reaching out again to select me to serve as his running mate, and Insha-Allah, as the Vice-President of the Republic, under an Akufo-Addo presidency. Mr. Chairman, I believe that in selecting me as his running mate, Nana Akufo Addo is sending a message to the nation about his vision for the economic transformation of this country. I was 2

privileged to have served this country in my capacity as a technocrat and Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana between 2000 and 2008. During this period, I was privileged to be part of a dynamic team of patriotic Ghanaians that implemented policies and economic reforms that succeeded in moving Ghana from a HIPC country to a lower middle income country in 8 years! You would recall that under the Vision 2020 agenda, Ghana was supposed to achieve middle income status by the year 2020. Initially the NPP directed its efforts at...