According to the Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, Ghana will not reach an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by the end of May, as predicted by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.
According to his assessment, the earliest that Ghana may successfully finalize the transaction is between the months of July and August.
During an interview on TV3, a lawmaker representing Ejumako Enyan Essiam said, “You notice that Ghana is still struggling to get an IMF program. The President came to Parliament to promise us that he was going to get us a deal by March.
I said that it was not going to happen. March is gone, April is gone, and we are now in May.” The lawmaker was referring to the fact that March and April have already passed and May is currently underway.
“I can confirm to you that it is not going to happen by the end of May; it is not going to happen. I will urge our Minister responsible for Finance to be truthful to the people of Ghana and be candid enough to say that yes, the timelines that we have, we said A, B, and C, but we cannot make it.”
The commencement of the third quarter, which includes July and August, is the earliest possible start date.
The International Monetary Fund acknowledges Ghana's efforts to mitigate the economic impact of COVID-19 through its budgetary measures.
It should be recalled that the Minister of Finance, Mr. Ofori-Atta, stated that the government anticipated that the Fund's board would approve of the arrangement by the month of May this year.
On Thursday, April 13, he addressed the investors at a meeting that was held on the sidelines of the ongoing IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington, District of Columbia, United States of America.
Ato Forson stated that “we do at this time expect an IMF board approval in May and contemplate a rapid negotiation of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with our creditors.” We have exerted a great deal of work across the board.”
Ato Forson went on to reassure the investors that the administration has taken a number of actions to ensure that the difficulties with the nation's finances are addressed and that these efforts will be made.
Ato Forson made this announcement to the investors on the sidelines of the IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings, which are now taking place in Washington, District of Columbia, United States.
Ato Forson was there to discuss the country's efforts to negotiate a deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which includes the restructuring of the country's debt.
He stated, “Ghana has done a number of things, the first of which relates to the Paris Club; we did travel to China; we sorted support from India and the Saudis; and we really maintained open relations with the Club.”
We have had a good relationship; we really commend the Paris Club for the sense of urgency that they have, and we are confident that they will be able to bring the assurances to the Bank in the coming week.
“We did get to the club to let them know that we were worried about the track record of the common framework.”
In addition to this, he gave the impression that the government had the intention of strengthening its ties with its external creditors.
“We reaffirm our commitment to work with our private and commercial creditors in all of our engagements,” he emphasized. “We look forward to working with you.”
