Ghana’s President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has announced that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Staff Level Agreement, the debt exchange programme, and the implementation of key structural reforms are yielding benefits.
Ghana’s President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo announced on May 1 that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Staff Level Agreement, the debt exchange programme, and the implementation of key structural reforms are yielding benefits. According to him, inflation is decelerating, interest rates on government treasury notes are declining, and the depreciation of the cedi is slowing down.
Mr Akufo-Addo also stated that after achieving a Staff Level Agreement with the IMF in December 2022 in record time, six months after beginning negotiations in July 2022, they have continued to work tirelessly to complete all prior actions required to present Ghana’s Programme to the IMF Executive Board for approval. They have also made substantial progress on the debt exchange programme and engagements with bilateral creditors to secure financing assurances required for the IMF Programme.
The IMF and World Bank have been very supportive in this journey. With the progress made so far, he expects the IMF Board to consider Ghana’s programme for imminent approval after financing assurances are provided. He further thanked Organised Labour for their role in this journey, especially their inputs into the preparation of the government’s Post COVID-19 Programme for Economic Growth which underpins the IMF-supported Programme.
He also expressed his gratitude to Organised Labour for their contributions to the preparation of the government’s Post COVID-19 Programme for Economic Growth, which is the foundation of the IMF-supported Programme.
“We are very confident that the approval of the IMF Programme will contribute significantly to revival of confidence required to drive the successful implementation of the Post COVID-19 Programme for Economic Growth and the key structural reforms for economic recovery and sustained inclusive growth.
“Already the progress we have made in securing the IMF Staff Level Agreement, in the debt exchange programme, and the implementation of key structural reforms, are yielding benefits. Inflation is decelerating, interest rates on government treasury notes are declining, the depreciation of the cedi is slowing down, and GDP growth for 2022 has performed beyond expectations. With the successful implementation of the Post COVID-19 Programme for Economic Growth, we expect growth to recover in the medium-term to over five percent (5%).
“The medium-term growth will be supported by key interventions to support improvements in the business environment and export competitiveness, promotion of entrepreneurship for private sector development, fast-tracking the implementation of key growth-oriented programmes under the Ghana CARES (Obaatan Pa) Programme, transitioning to a digital economy to boost productivity, tax collection, and the formalisation of the economy, and the strengthening of policies to adapt to and mitigate climate change for inclusive growth.”
