Barrow optimistic as economic growth 6.5%

By Pa Modou Cham

Adama Barrow, the President of The Gambia as on Thursday delivered his State of the nation address before the law makers in Banjul, expressed delight and optimistic for the future of our economy as it grew for the past years by 4.8% in 2018 and 6.5% in 2018.

He said that Balance of Payments (BoP) estimates indicate that the current account deficit narrowed to 1.5% of GDP in the first half of 2019 compared to a deficit of 1.7% of GDP in the corresponding quarter in 2018. He added that the improvement in the current account balance is attributed to the increase in foreign inflows related to the support from development partners, diaspora remittances, and tourism.

“Gross international reserve is projected at 4 months of next year’s imports of goods and services. The exchange rate of the dalasi remains broadly stable supported by market confidence, and increased inflows from private remittances, higher receipts from tourism, and official inflows from development partners. Government fiscal operations for the first six months of 2019 indicated that total revenue and grants stood at 9.8% of GDP compared to 8.6% of GDP in the same period last year."

He continued that total expenditure and net lending declined from 11.5 percent of GDP a year ago to 10 percent of GDP in the first part of 2019.
President Barrow stated that according to the financial soundness indicators, the banking sector remains adequately capitalized, highly liquid and profitable, adding that the ratio of non-performing loans to gross loans declined to 2.3% from 2.7% a year ago, largely reflecting enhanced credit administration processes and effective loan recovery measures.

“Private sector credit expanded by 28.8%, higher than 20% a year ago. With the private sector expected to play a significant role in financing of the National Development Plan (2018-2021), we have drafted a revision to the Public Private Partnership (PPP) Law with the support of Expertise France and other International Financial Institutions. As a result, we will submit the bill to the National Assembly for consideration.”