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Ken Ofori Atta, the Finance Minister, has attributed the decision to seek financial assistance from the IMF to hitherto unheard-of global challenges.
The Finance Minister stated that until the introduction of Covid 19 in 2020, Ghana’s economy was on the correct track during his presentation of the Midyear Budget Review on Monday, July 25 in Parliament.
He continued by saying that before the Russia-Ukraine war exacerbated Ghana’s financial crisis, the nation was on the road to recovery.
“Yes, I understand that this Government promised the country that Ghana would move beyond aid, and our plans and programs for economic transformation have been created to do just that. In fact, I did state that Ghana would not enter an IMF programme.
Not just now, either.
We also implemented a number of irreversible steps, like as the Fiscal Responsibility Act, and launched the Ghana CARES “Obaatan Pa” initiative for economic change. These actions contributed to the achievement of that goal.
“Unfortunately, unprecedented global developments over the past two years, especially in these last six months, have really and truly disrupted our efforts. Governments across the world have had to change course to tackle the current crisis. Governments that less than a year ago were busily talking about energy transition and green and cleaner fuels have gone back to firing their coal plants. Governments that are known for low taxes are now raising taxes to tackle growing deficits. These are not ordinary times; not for Ghana, not for Africa, and certainly not for the whole world.”
According to the Bank of Ghana’s most recent statistics, as of June 2022, Ghana’s total public debt stock was US$54.4 billion, or GH393.4 billion.
From $58.6 billion in December 2021 to $54.4 billion in the first six months of 2022, the debt decreased by around $4 billion in dollar terms.
However, in Cedi terms, the overall debt stock climbed by nearly GH41 billion in the first half of this year.
According to information from the Central Bank’s Summary of Economic and Financial Data report, as of June 2022, an extra 41.6 billion Ghana cedis had raised the country’s total public debt to GH393.4 billion.
Source: Ghanatodayonline.com
