The Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, has revealed that the $600 million second tranche International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout package expected next week would be used for some programmes in the 2024 Budget.
The Executive Board of the IMF is hoping to meet on Friday, January 19, 2024, in Washington DC, USA to carry out Ghana’s first review under the Fund programme.
The board is expected to approve the $600 million and disburse same to Ghana within the next three working days.
Speaking on PM Express Business Edition which will be aired today January 18, 2024, on JoyNews, Mr. Ofori-Atta said the country has met all the requirements to get the funding.
“We are very optimistic that Ghana will pass this review when the Executive Board of the IMF meets on January 19, 2024”, he expressed hope.
IMF Board Meeting:
The meeting scheduled for Friday, January 19, 2024, was earlier postponed due to some difficulties from Ghana in securing the much-needed “financing assurance” from the bilateral creditors through the official creditor committee on restructuring the country’s debt.
This forced the board to re-schedule its meeting on several occasions from November 2023.
It was moved again from January 18 to January 19, 2024, after the board members asked for three working days to review Ghana’s documents submitted by the IMF staff.
The board is going ahead with its meeting on Ghana after the country reached a deal with bilateral creditors on the terms for restructuring about $5.4 billion debts.
The board will also release the staff report to the public on status of the Ghana’s programme and how government has fared over the past month.
IMF cash disbursement:
Mr. Ofori-Atta is hopeful the “possible disbursement” of the funds will unlock other support from Ghana’s donors.
The World Bank Board is expected to meet on January 25, 2024, and approve the disbursement of some $550 million.
In all, $300 million will be advanced towards some projects in the budget, while the 250 million dollars will also go to the Ghana Stability Fund, an initiative, aimed at supporting institutions that were hit badly by the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme.
By the end of January 2024, Ghana could secure over $1.1 billion from the IMF and World Bank to support the economy.
Source: Joy Business