The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Ghanaian authorities have achieved an agreement on a third assessment of the country’s US$3 billion loan programme, the IMF said in a statement on Friday.
The IMF met with Ghanaian authorities in Accra on Tuesday, September 24, and concluded on Friday, October 4, discussing the authorities’ policy goals and the status of reforms in light of the third review of Ghana’s three-year program under the Extended Credit Facility.
The Bank of Ghana (BoG) Governor Ernest Addison, the Finance Minister Mohammed Amin Adam, and his teams, together with officials from other government agencies, were all met by the IMF staff team headed by Stéphane Roudet, the mission chief for Ghana.
“The IMF staff and Ghanaian authorities have reached a staff-level agreement on the third review of Ghana’s economic program under the Extended Credit Facility arrangement,” stated Roudet at the conclusion of the mission.
He clarified that the deal, which would provide Ghana access to roughly US$360 million, is contingent to Executive Board and IMF management approval and would increase the IMF’s financial support granted to approximately US$1.92 billion.
“This staff-level agreement is subject to IMF management approval and executive board consideration. Upon completion of the Executive Board review, Ghana would have access to SDR 269.1 million (about US$360 million), bringing the total IMF financial support disbursed under the arrangement, since May 2023, to SDR 1,441 million (about US$1,920 million).”
According to Roudet, the authorities operating under the program sponsored by the IMF have usually performed satisfactorily, and their efforts to implement policy and reform have continued to yield positive outcomes.
“Performance under the IMF-supported programme has been generally satisfactory. All end-June 2024 quantitative targets were met, and progress on key structural reforms has continued notwithstanding delays in a few areas. The authorities’ policy and reform efforts under the programme have continued to deliver encouraging results.”
Source: Ghanatodayonline.com