President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has stated that his government’s decision to secure a $3 billion extended credit facility with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in July 2022 has paid off, looking at the rate of recovery of the Ghanaian economy since the facility was secured in 2023.
Speaking with the IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva, who called on him at the Jubilee House, President Akufo-Addo said Ghana’s recent engagement with the Fund has clearly paid off and turned the country’s economy around.
He said his administration will continue to implement sound economic policies as well as stay the cause about the current IMF programme the country is executing.
President Akufo-Addo said the next important thing to do after stabilizing the Ghanaian economy is to engender rapid economic growth that would benefit the majority of Ghanaians from the country’s development.
He said Ghana’s strong predicted growth, systematic decline in inflation and interest rates and relatively stable exchange rate have shown that the country’s economy is stabilizing.
Ghana’s strong partnership with the Kristalina Georgieva-led IMF, according to President Akufo-Addo, has been fruitful, underpinned by a strong sense and clear understanding of the problems of Ghana.
The president said that despite the ensuing discussions, the government was committed to the arrangements that it had entered into with the Fund and would make sure they stayed on course.
On his part, IMF boss Kristalina Georgieva said there were two issues that she was committed to and the first was the quick growth of the Ghanaian economy and the world at large. For Ghana, the IMF Boss said quick growth was needed as a result of the difficult period of the country’s high debt levels and deficits caused by the shocks of COVID-19 and the Russian-Ukraine war.
She said Ghana, like many other countries, did not appreciate the enormity and size of the global shock; particularly in an election year, there was more the country could sustain.
The main lesson from the country’s experience, she indicated, was for the government to do the right things now to build the strongest possible foundation for growth.
