The International Monetary Fund will deploy another mission to Ghana in the coming weeks for another round of assessment following Ghana’s request for an economic bailout.
Gerry Rice, the International Monetary Fund’s Director of Communications, recently revealed this during a media engagement.
“Ghana has, as you probably know, requested a program from the IMF. We had an IMF staff team in Accra in July [2022] to begin initial discussions with the Ghanaian authorities. And we characterized that mission as constructive, kickstarted the process, and laid the groundwork for engagement, which now continues.”
“Our Mission Chief for the IMF also recently visited Accra, again, to meet with key counterparts. And we’re hopeful of another visit in the coming weeks. I don’t have a date for you, but [it will surely be] in the coming weeks,” added.
An IMF staff team led by Carlo Sdralevich visited Accra from July 6 to 13, 2022, to assess the current economic situation and discuss the broad lines of the government’s Enhanced Domestic Program, which could be supported by an IMF lending arrangement.
The IMF team met with H.E. Vice President Bawumia, Finance Minister Ofori-Atta, and Bank of Ghana Governor Addison.
The team also met with the Finance Committee of Parliament, civil society organizations, and development partners such as UNICEF and the World Bank to discuss social spending.
The IMF in its assessment said
“Ghana is facing a challenging economic and social situation amid an increasingly difficult global environment. The fiscal and debt situation has severely worsened following the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, investors’ concerns have triggered credit rating downgrades, capital outflows, loss of external market access, and rising domestic borrowing costs.
“In addition, the global economic shock caused by the war in Ukraine is hitting Ghana at a time when the country is still recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic shock and with limited room for maneuver. These adverse developments have contributed to slowing economic growth, accumulation of unpaid bills, a large exchange rate depreciation, and a surge in inflation.
“The IMF team held initial discussions on a comprehensive reform package to restore macroeconomic stability and anchor debt sustainability. The team made progress in assessing the economic situation and identifying policy priorities in the near term. The discussions focused on improving fiscal balances in a sustainable way while protecting the vulnerable and poor; ensuring credibility of the monetary policy and exchange rate regimes; preserving financial sector stability; and designing reforms to enhance growth, create jobs, and strengthen governance.
“IMF staff will continue to monitor the economic and social situation closely and engage in the coming weeks with the authorities on the formulation of their Enhanced Domestic Program that could be supported by an IMF arrangement and with broad stakeholders’ consultation
“We reaffirm our commitment to support Ghana at this difficult time, consistent with the IMF’s policies.
“Staff express their gratitude to the authorities, civil society, and development partners for their constructive engagement and support during the mission.”
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
