Lord Mensah to Gov’t: Exempt Pensioners From Debt Exchange Programme

Professor Lord Mensah, an associate professor at the University of Ghana Business School, has advised the government to exempt pensioners from its Domestic Debt Exchange Programme.

Mensah argues that the quantum of bonds held by pensioners is insignificant, and so offering them an exemption is not only right but will not make a significant difference to the government’s attempts to raise revenue.

Speaking to Kwaku Nhyira-Addo on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Monday (16 January), Mensah said: “I will prefer we exempt pensioners and the disabled, because usually these are people [of whom] you know very well that generating economic activities around themselves will be very low.

“So, I will plead with the government: I don’t think the quantum of bonds that they are holding within the entire debt structure will be so much,” he said. “I don’t think they will exceed GHC3 billion.”