The World Bank is warning that poorly performing State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), especially in energy and agriculture, continue to pose fiscal risks to the country’s economic stability.

It is therefore calling for urgent reforms and strengthened oversight to ensure long-term stability and fiscal sustainability.

In its latest analysis of the Ghanaian economy, the Bretton Woods institution said structural challenges persist.

It expressed worry that Ghana’s tax-to-Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio averaged 12.5% (2020–2024), below regional peers, due to VAT exemptions, evasion, and underutilised extractive industry revenues.

It continued that the fiscal consolidation programme faced setbacks in 2024 due to election-related spending and arrears, but improved markedly in early 2025 through strong expenditure restraint and new fiscal rules.

“Expenditure overruns led to fiscal slippages in 2024, but H1 [half-year] 2025 saw improved fiscal discipline driven by spending restraint and new fiscal rules”.

Public Debt  

On debt, it pointed out that Ghana’s public debt is assessed as sustainable in the medium term, contingent on completing external debt restructuring and maintaining strong fiscal discipline.

It added that Ghana’s comprehensive debt restructuring is nearing completion with a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the Official Creditors Committee in January 2025, Eurobond exchange finalised in October 2024, and negotiations with remaining commercial creditors underway in line with International Monetary Fund programme parameters.

The government’s comprehensive debt restructuring strategy covered domestic, bilateral, Eurobond, and commercial creditor claims, with tailored solutions for each creditor group and ongoing negotiations for the remaining external debt.