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🇬🇭 Ghana /Economy & Trade

Quality data key to better decisions and national development, Bank of Ghana deputy governor says

From Ghanaian Times · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Bank of Ghana First Deputy Governor Zakari Mumuni says data quality is essential for sound policymaking and economic management in Ghana.
  • He urged statistical agencies, researchers and other institutions to produce accurate, relevant and timely information rather than simply collect larger volumes of data.
  • Mumuni called for responsible use of digital payments, tax, telecommunications and satellite data, alongside safeguards for confidentiality and governance.

Ghana’s challenge is no longer a lack of data, Bank of Ghana First Deputy Governor Dr Zakari Mumuni told a statistics and data science conference in Tamale. The harder task is turning a growing volume of information into timely and reliable intelligence for decision-makers.

Speaking at the Ghana Statistical Association’s fourth annual conference, Mumuni said the country’s entry into the era of artificial intelligence and big data should make accuracy, relevance and reliability a priority. The event brought together representatives from government, academia, industry and international organisations to discuss the role of statistics and data science in national development.

Everything else depends upon it.

· Zakari MumuniHe stressed that data quality should be a priority for institutions producing statistics.

“Data itself does not make policy. A forecast does not make policy. An algorithm does not make policy. People make policy,” Mumuni said. He argued that statistics and data science should support decisions that are better informed, timely and grounded in evidence.

Drawing on the Bank of Ghana’s work, he said data quality begins with collection. The bank’s Research Department conducts price monitoring and business and consumer confidence surveys across the country, including Tamale, so monetary policy can reflect conditions beyond Accra.

Data itself does not make policy. A forecast does not make policy. An algorithm does not make policy. People make policy.

· Zakari MumuniHe emphasized that people, rather than data or technology alone, make policy decisions.

Mumuni warned that advanced technology cannot repair weak data. “If definitions are unclear, classifications inconsistent, or data poorly validated, even the most sophisticated model can produce misleading results,” he said, adding that the principle of “garbage in, garbage out” still applies in the age of AI.

He also urged responsible use of high-frequency and alternative data from digital payments, taxation, telecommunications and satellite imagery. Such information could help policymakers detect economic trends sooner, but he said statistical standards, confidentiality and proper governance must be maintained. He further called for closer cooperation between universities, researchers and public institutions, with research conducted alongside policymakers rather than merely presented to them.

If definitions are unclear, classifications inconsistent, or data poorly validated, even the most sophisticated model can produce misleading results.

· Zakari MumuniHe warned that artificial intelligence cannot turn poor-quality data into reliable information.
About this summary

Originally published by Ghanaian Times in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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