Veep deplores lack of co-ordination among state agencies

"We need accurate data to be able to plan appropriately and also assure the market of the performance of the economy," he said.

Speaking at the re-launch of the Economic Planning Coordinating Committee (EPCC) in Accra, the Vice-President said without effective collaboration among the agencies, it would be difficult to achieve economic growth objectives.

The mandate of the EPPC, which consists of representatives of state agencies that deal directly with the management of the economy, is to regularly brainstorm on fiscal developments and challenges and feed the Economic Management Team with the necessary information for action.

The Vice-President said to achieve the highest level of micro-economic stability, regular and accurate economic data were required to keep all stakeholders updated.

That, he said, could only be achieved through collaboration and cross analysis of economic data.

"I believe we need to tackle difficult problems and not postpone them; and we can effectively address the challenges in a timely manner when accurate information is available," he said.

Mr Amissah-Arthur also called for improved analytical capacity on the part of the agencies, saying in the absence of that "the feasible option is for us to collaborate in analysing the fiscal developments".

He lauded the revival of the EPCC, which he said would help assure the private sector and development partners of high accuracy in economic data.

"We have the objective of sustaining and enhancing growth, and the contribution of the EPCC is critical in that regard," he said.

The EPCC was set up in 2001 with representations from the Ministry of Finance, the Bank of Ghana, the Controller and Accountant-General's Department, the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Ghana Cocoa Board and the Ghana Statistical Service.

 However, it has not been very active over the years.

As an institutional arrangement, the committee, which is co-chaired by the Minister of Finance and the Governor of Bank of Ghana, is expected to submit monthly "fiscal early warning” reports to the Economic Management Team, which will in turn brief the Cabinet for the necessary action.