The economy is being managed well, and Ghanaians are pleased with the improvement – Majority Leader

Majority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has affirmed that Ghana’s economy is in capable hands. He expressed confidence in the government’s ability to manage the economy effectively.

“The economy is in the hands of those who have the power to bring it back,” he stated on the floor of Parliament following Finance Minister Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam’s mid-year budget presentation on Tuesday, July 23.

During his presentation, the Finance Minister revealed that Ghana’s provisional total debt stock stood at GH¢742 billion, equivalent to US$50.9 billion, as of June 2024. This represents 70.6 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). He detailed that the debt stock comprises GH¢452.0 billion in external debt and GH¢290.0 billion in domestic debt, making up 60.9 percent and 39.1 percent of the total debt stock, respectively. As a percentage of GDP, external and domestic debt accounted for 43.0 percent and 27.6 percent, respectively. He noted that the increase of 22 percent was due to the cedi’s depreciation and ongoing disbursements from creditors.

Dr. Amin Adam assured Ghanaians that the government is adhering to its budget. He mentioned that expenditures have been controlled to align with the 2024 Budget Appropriation and that midyear revenue targets had been exceeded by 0.2 percent by the end of June 2024.

“Mr. Speaker, we are living within our means. Consistent with our program with the IMF, we are on track to achieve a primary surplus of 0.5 percent of GDP by the end of the year,” he said.

He further noted the successful completion of the second review of the Extended Credit Facility with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which led to the disbursement of the third tranche of US$360 million, bringing the total disbursement to approximately US$1.6 billion. He also mentioned the completion of the Debt Restructuring Program with the Official Creditor Committee (OCC), covering US$5.1 billion and resulting in about US$2.8 billion in debt relief, meaning no debt service to official creditors from 2023 to 2026.

Additionally, he reported on the concluded negotiations with Eurobond holders, covering US$13.1 billion, leading to a cancellation of US$4.7 billion of debt and providing US$4.4 billion in debt service relief between 2023 and 2026.

Dr. Amin Adam also highlighted negotiations with five of the seven Independent Power Producers, which will save approximately US$6.6 billion over the lifetime of the Purchasing Power Agreements (PPAs). He mentioned the clearing of all outstanding Bank Transfer Advice (BTAs) up to 2022 and ongoing efforts to pay BTAs from 2023.

The Finance Minister emphasized major reforms of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), especially in the Energy and Cocoa sectors, to ensure fiscal prudence and reduce their risk to the budget.