This was the central message delivered by Ambassador Professor Hugh Aryee, Vanuatu Trade Commissioner to Ghana, during a high-level engagement on the theme “Digital Value Systems in the Economic Reset: Understanding Virtual Assets, Digital Currency, and Responsible Media Reporting.”
The forum brought together representatives of the Bank of Ghana and the members of the Private Newspapers and Online Publishers Association of Ghana (PRINPAG) at a workshop in Ada.
Economic Reset and the Question of Trust
The current economic reforms follow years of macroeconomic strain marked by high inflation, currency depreciation, fiscal deficits and debt sustainability challenges.
Government’s response — including IMF-backed programmes, expenditure controls and institutional reforms — is aimed at restoring credibility in public finance, stability in the cedi, and trust in governance systems.
According to Ambassador Aryee, these reforms cannot succeed on policy instruments alone. Public understanding and confidence, he noted, are essential, and the media sits at the centre of that process.
“Economic recovery is not only engineered through policy,” he observed.
“It is sustained through public understanding and confidence, and that confidence is shaped largely by the media.”
Digital Value Systems Enter the Economic Conversation
Beyond traditional economic reforms, Ghana’s economy is increasingly intersecting with digital value systems — new ways in which value is stored, transferred, settled and recorded in a digital age.
These developments, once considered abstract, are now directly affecting everyday economic activity.
From cross-border trade and remittances to government efficiency and the survival of media houses grappling with declining advertising revenues, digital systems are reshaping how economic participation occurs.
Ambassador Aryee stressed that journalists must understand these systems to report responsibly and accurately.
Drawing The Line Between
Cryptocurrency And Digital Currency
A major concern raised during the engagement was the persistent confusion in public discourse between cryptocurrencies and structured digital value systems, a situation often worsened by sensational or inaccurate reporting.
Cryptocurrencies, the Commissioner explained, are typically decentralized, speculative, and driven by global market sentiment, with significant price volatility and limited direct linkage to productive economic activity.
Misinformation and hype have further distorted public perception.
By contrast, centralised or regional digital value systems — such as ADCB AKL or AKL Lumi — are utility-driven instruments designed for payments, settlement and trade.
They operate within institutional frameworks, complement sovereign currencies rather than replace them, and are structured to support regional trade, MSMEs and financial inclusion.
Lumping all digital instruments under the label “crypto,” he cautioned, undermines innovation, regulation and informed public understanding.
AKL Lumi and Hanypay: Digital Tools for Trade and Media Sustainability
AKL Lumi was presented as a digital value system built for trade rather than speculation, aimed at facilitating payments, supporting cross-border economic activity and expanding inclusion, particularly in emerging markets. It is designed to work alongside existing financial systems while respecting regulatory environments.
Complementing this is Hanypay, a fintech infrastructure platform that enables secure digital wallets, peer-to-peer and institutional transactions, cross-border payments and conversion between digital value systems and fiat currencies across more than 170 currencies.
Crucially, Hanypay is positioning media houses as participants in the digital economy, not merely observers.
The platform intends to onboard newspapers and online publishers, enabling them to receive digital payments for content, subscriptions and services, diversify revenue streams and reduce reliance on declining advertising income.
Responsibility of the Media in the Digital Economy
With innovation comes responsibility, Ambassador Aryee emphasized. As digital finance expands, journalists must distinguish legitimate innovation from fraud, explain complex financial systems without sensationalism, and report on policy developments without fear-mongering or alarmism.
“Responsible reporting builds confidence,” he said. “Confidence drives participation, and participation drives recovery.”
Call for Collaboration and Capacity Building
The Vanuatu Trade Commissioner in Ghana expressed readiness to collaborate with the media through technical briefings, capacity-building programmes, responsible content partnerships and sustained dialogue with regulators. Such collaboration, the Commissioner noted, is essential for building economic literacy and supporting national transformation.
In closing, Ambassador Aryee described the economic reset as not merely a matter of stabilizing economic indicators, but of rebuilding belief in systems and institutions.
That belief, he said, is shaped by how information is communicated.
He commended PRINPAG for prioritizing economic literacy and acknowledged the Bank of Ghana’s support for informed journalism, expressing optimism for deeper collaboration in building a digitally informed and economically resilient Ghana.
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