Economic policy is an entirely different game

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Senyo K. Hosi has argued that applying profit-and-loss logic to national economic policy misunderstands how public interventions work.

Using personal and entrepreneurial examples, Hosi said spending decisions are guided by purpose, not immediate profit.

“As a father, my spending is not aimed at generating profit for myself,” he said, adding that business investments often prioritise long-term value over short-term gains.

He extended this logic to public policy, explaining that interventions such as education or export support are designed to generate future economic benefits, not instant financial returns.

“That’s why we discuss economic costs and benefits, not accounting profits,” he noted in an article titled, GOLDBOD: LOSS OR NO LOSS? The Price of Everything and The Value of Nothing.

Hosi stressed that policies should be judged against their objectives, including inflation control, exchange rate stability, employment, and social outcomes. “Each economic policy intervention must align with the outcomes it seeks to achieve,” he said.

In his view, calling a policy a failure solely because of a headline loss figure oversimplifies complex economic realities.

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