Ghana reaches $3 bn deal with IMF

The West Africa state is facing more than 40% inflation, growing debt and a sharp decline in its cedi currency since the start of the year.

Dec 14, 2022 - 14:32
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Ghana reaches $3 bn deal with IMF
The Black Star Gate in Accra, Ghana. Picture: @IMFAfrica/Twitter

ACCRA - Ghana has agreed on a $3 billion credit deal with the International Monetary Fund, the multilateral lender said on Tuesday, as the country battles its worst economic crisis in decades.

The West Africa state is facing more than 40% inflation, growing debt and a sharp decline in its cedi currency since the start of the year.

The IMF statement said Ghana's government had committed to "a wide-ranging economic reform program" that will restore stability and debt sustainability.

The three-year IMF loan agreement will be approved by the fund's board.

The crisis forced President Nana Akufo-Addo's government to reverse its position earlier this year and seek IMF help as economists warned the country risked a default on its debt payments.

The government has already announced a domestic debt swap as part of the programme to ease a crunch in payments.

A top cocoa and gold producer, Ghana also has oil and gas reserves, but its debt service payments have soared and like the rest of sub-Saharan Africa it has been hit hard by fallout from the COVID pandemic and the Ukraine war.