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Government has, with immediate effect, banned all state institutions from purchasing imported furniture for office use. The ban, according to Local Government and Rural Development Minister, Julius Debrah, forms part of government�s home-grown policies designed to stabilize the local currency, the Cedi, which has seen a historical fall in value against the Dollar and other major trading currencies. It also aims to promote the patronage of locally produced furniture to generate employment for the youth in particular, as well as those employed in the industry. �When you import any piece of furniture from outside, the first thing we suffer is that we need to exchange our currency for foreign ones [dollar] to be able to access it,� Mr. Debrah told Myjoyonline.com in Koforidua in the Eastern Region on Saturday, September 13, 2014; on the sidelines of his Ministry�s engagement with the media on its strategic direction.