President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has stated that the government is committed to hastening the progress made so far on restructuring its external debt with its official creditors.
He noted that though Ghana delayed in getting the second tranche of the $3 billion bailout package with the International Monetary Fund, IMF, it has intensified engagement with the external creditors to ensure the process is quickened.
In his State of the Nation Address on Tuesday, the president noted that he is committed to addressing the economic challenges facing the country.
“We have also intensified our engagement with our external bondholders on the principles of transparency, fair treatment, consistency with the IMF debt sustainability analysis, and good faith. We are focused and committed to accelerating the process.
“Mr. Speaker, we are committed to concluding the external debt restructuring process as soon as possible, so we move past the crisis. This will enable us to complete substantial projects that have been constrained due to financial challenges”
He also assured that the recent change in the leadership of the Finance Ministry will not affect the Government’s commitment to implementing the terms agreed with the IMF.
“It is important to underline that the recent change in the leadership of the Finance Ministry will not affect the Government’s commitment to implementing the terms agreed with the IMF to ensure that we restore the economy to healthy growth as soon as possible”, the President concluded.
Macro-economic indicators
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo says recent macroeconomic indicators must spark optimism as they collectively point towards a positive trajectory for economic growth.
The President maintains that Gross Domestic (GDP) growth, the performance of the cedi and inflation stability are indicative of the country’s resilience and recovery amidst global uncertainties.
He reaffirmed his government’s commitment to overcome Ghana’s battered economy.
“Indeed, the macro economy was much stronger at the end of 2023 than in 2022. Inflation, which peaked at 54.1% in December 2022 has reduced to 23.5% in January 2024. Real GDP Growth for the first three quarters of 2023 averaged 2.8 percent, higher than the targeted growth rate of 1.5% for 2023. The cedi has been largely stable since February 2023, with a cumulative depreciation of nine percent (9%) between February and December 2023.”
“Gross International Reserves reflected a significant buildup of at five-point-nine billion dollars (US$5.9 billion), enough to cover 2.7 months of imports of goods and services. The current account turned positive at 1.4% of GDP at the end of September 2023, from negative two-point-one percent (-2.1%) at the end of December 2022. Generally, the macroeconomic indicators are, once again, pointing in the right direction”, he said.
