The Governor of Bank of Ghana, Ernest Addison, announcing the introduction of the new notes said that a lot of thinking went into the decision to introduce the higher denomination banknotes.
According to the governor, the introduction was aligned well with the needs of the people.
“A lot of thinking went into the decision to introduce the higher denomination banknotes. The structure of the banknote should align well with the needs of the people who use it for their daily transactions.
“We need banknotes and coins that are convenient for most people to use, high quality, secure and cost-effective. Accordingly, in March 2017, the Bank of Ghana begun a process of conducting a thorough review of the structure of the currency including on the note/coin boundary and acceptability and use of the individual currency series,” Dr Addison said.
He said the review exercise which involved conducting a nationwide survey with market operatives, businesses and international stakeholders as well as some empirical exercise.
“The review exercise which involved conducting a nationwide survey with market operatives, businesses, and international stakeholders as well as some empirical exercise. The outcome of these exercises revealed the resurgence of deadweight burden issues on the economy due to past significant inflation and perennial depreciation of the currency, a significant increase in the demand for higher denomination banknote and increased cost of printing.”
BoG announced new cedi notes which it believes will help shore up the value of the currency.
Ghana will now issue GH¢100 and GH¢200 and GH¢2 coins, Governor of the Central Bank.