Professor John Gasti, a renowned economist and dean of the University of Cape Coast Business School, has expressed his views on the intense lobbying efforts aimed at persuading President Akufo-Addo not to sign the newly passed anti-gay bill into law.
He suggested that the Ministry of Finance’s appeal to the President is influenced by external pressures rather than genuine economic concerns.
Speaking on TV3’s Ghana Tonight program on Monday, March 4, Professor Gasti raised questions about the motivations behind the Ministry of Finance’s report detailing the potential financial losses Ghana might face from international donors if the anti-gay bill is enacted.
He asserted that the bill’s status was not a precondition for Ghana’s IMF bailout approval, emphasizing that the focus of the IMF deal was primarily on economic matters, not social policies like LGBTQ rights.
Professor Gasti speculated that there is a significant amount of lobbying activity underway, particularly from international entities unhappy with Ghana’s stance on LGBTQ rights. He suggested that these entities are now using the Ministry of Finance to exert pressure on the Ghanaian government to prevent the bill from becoming law.
Furthermore, he highlighted that the conditions for Ghana to receive financial assistance from organizations like the World Bank were primarily related to economic reforms and loan approvals by the Ghanaian parliament, rather than social issues like LGBTQ rights.
The finance ministry’s concerns about potential funding cuts from the World Bank include various projects and negotiations, such as the First and Second Ghana Resilient Recovery Development Policy Operations, the Ghana Financial Stability Fund, and ongoing projects worth billions of dollars.
In summary, Professor Gasti’s comments shed light on the complex interplay between economic considerations, international pressures, and social policy decisions in Ghana’s legislative process.