The Ranking Member of the Finance Committee of Parliament, Isaac Adongo has voiced apprehensions regarding the recent staff review conducted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Ghana’s three-year Extended Facility Programme.

According to him, the IMF’s optimistic evaluation, which positions Ghana to receive the third tranche of $360 million from the total $3 billion IMF bailout package, fails to accurately reflect the true state of the nation’s economy.

While the IMF has lauded Ghana for its performance, citing key indicators that suggest the programme’s effectiveness, Mr Adongo remains sceptical about the actual conditions on the ground.

He maintains reservations regarding whether the positive evaluation genuinely mirrors the economic realities experienced by ordinary Ghanaians.

Ghana is currently progressing towards passing the management executive board review, a milestone that would pave the way for the release of the third tranche of $360 million from the $3 billion package.

In response to the IMF’s report heralding Ghana’s robust performance, Adongo underscored the disconnection between the IMF’s assessment and the hardships faced by Ghanaians.

He argued that Ghanaians, being directly impacted by economic conditions, possess a deeper understanding of the true state of Ghana's economy.

Mr Adongo emphasized that the economic challenges confronting Ghanaians should not be disregarded or trivialised solely based on favourable evaluations by international institutions such as the IMF.

He contends that the voices and experiences of ordinary citizens must be integral to the assessment of economic policies and programmes.

“Do you need the IMF to come and tell you that you can’t buy a ball of kenkey? Do you need the IMF to tell you that the fuel is now almost GH¢15 per litre?

"Do you need the IMF to tell you that you need more than GH¢13 to buy a dollar? IMF is a consultant to Ghana and no consultant has ever told the people of Ghana that it has failed."

“The truth is what you and I know, IMF doesn’t buy things from our market. The survey is telling us that inflation is getting worse and you want to believe what the IMF says?” he quizzed.