Former President John Dramani Mahama has called on Ghana’s Ministers of Finance and Energy to take proactive steps to protect the recent progress made in reducing petroleum prices, as rising tensions between Israel and Iran threaten to push global oil prices higher.

Speaking during his Thank You Tour of the Savannah Region on June 14, President Mahama acknowledged Ghana’s recent strides in economic stability but warned that the country remains vulnerable to external shocks.

“Despite the work we have done in stabilising the economy, Ghana is not immune from the shocks of global events,” he said.

President Mahama pointed to the recent missile exchanges between Israel and Iran, which have triggered a sharp spike in crude oil prices on the international market—a development that could reverse the recent downward trend in local fuel prices.

“Recent events in the Middle East, which involve an exchange of missiles between Israel and Iran, have started to escalate crude oil prices dramatically,” he noted.

He revealed that he has tasked the Ministers of Finance and Energy to closely monitor the situation and develop contingency plans to safeguard the gains made in lowering fuel prices.

“I’ve asked our Minister of Finance and Minister of Energy to keep a close eye on the development and model the possible impacts on our petroleum prices, and prepare measures to protect the recent gains that we have made,” Mahama stated.