The Finance Ministry has indicated that Ghana is now ready to go to the Board of the International Monetary Fund for approval of a programme.

This follows the extension of Financing Assurance to Ghana Creditor Committee under the G20 Common Framework.

The creditor committee stressed that the Ghanaian authorities are expected to seek from all private creditors and other official bilateral creditors’ debt treatments on terms at least as favourable as those being considered by the creditor committee, in line with the comparability of treatment principle. 

In a tweet, the Finance Ministry said “The Paris Club has today established the OCC (co-chaired by China & France). With the granting of Financing Assurances, Ghana is now ready to go to the IMF Board. Thank you to all our bilateral partners for helping us reach this significant milestone!”

Earlier, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said it was optimistic Ghana’s external creditors, particularly the Paris Club will soon reach an agreement with the country on restructuring the country’s external debt.

Responding to a question at a Press Conference, Julie Kozack, Director of Communications at the IMF said “Financing assurances from official bi-lateral creditors are necessary for presenting the programme to the Executive Board”.

“We have seen strong progress toward creditors delivering on these financing assurances, and we’re hopeful that they can be delivered very rapidly”, she added.

On December 12, 2022, the IMF reached a Staff Level Agreement with Ghana for a three-year program ECF for about $3 billion.

The country has already successfully concluded a Domestic Debt Exchange Programme, which saw the participation of key stakeholders such as the Ghana Bankers Association, the Ghana Insurers Association and the Chamber of Corporate Trustees.

The IMF loan programme is part of a broader effort to support developing countries as they recover from the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact. It is a testament to the critical role that international organisations play in supporting countries during difficult times, and the need for global cooperation to tackle economic and social challenges.