Ghana remains world’s largest borrower under our poverty loan facility – IMF

Ghana has emerged as the country across the globe with the highest outstanding loan under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust (PRGT) at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The Poverty Trust which is one of the funds countries can draw credit from is specifically to support the potential balance of payment problems of low-income countries over a period of one to three years.

But the IMF’s Quarterly Finance Report for July-ending 2023 puts Ghana as the highly indebted country under that Trust broadly known as concessional loan and debt relief trusts.

This is because Ghana accounts for almost 10 percent of the 17,684 million Special Drawing Rights (SDR) in total loans still owed under the Trust by countries.

The SDR stood at 1.689 billion, higher than the 1.246 billion recorded as of April 30, 2023, representing about a 35 percent increase.

Under that same Poverty Trust, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Kenya came second and third, respectively.

DR Congo owes the IMF 1,295 million SDR (7%) whereas Kenya is indebted to the tune of 1,078 SDR. million (6%).

Sudan and Uganda, whose exposure to the Trust stands at 992 million SDR (6%) and 903 million SDR (5 percent), respectively, placed fourth and fifth.

The remaining 11,727 million SDR (66 %) were owed to the IMF by the rest of the countries under the Poverty Reduction Fund.

Ghana has repaid 8 million in SDR. 1 SDR at IMF under the Poverty Trust equals US$1.34294.

In terms of regional breakdown of the outstanding poverty loans, Africa held a chunk amounting to 75 percent.

The least regional holder was Europe. It accounted for only one percent.

Ghana is currently under a US$ 3 billion three-year IMF support programme which has led to the restructuring of domestic and external debts at unsustainable levels.