Ghana has achieved a monumental financial milestone, securing USD8 billion in debt relief following the completion of its extensive debt restructuring programme.
This was announced by Finance Minister Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam during his mid-year budget review presentation to Parliament on Tuesday, 23 July, 2024.
Dr. Amin Adam elaborated on the success of the Debt Restructuring programme, which addressed USD 5.1 billion in debt with the Official Creditor Committee (OCC).
“We have completed the Debt Restructuring programme with the Official Creditor Committee (OCC), covering USD5.1 billion dollars resulting in approximately USD8 billion of debt relief.
“This means that we will not service our debt to our official creditors from 2023 to 2026,” he revealed.
Beyond this significant relief, Dr. Adam announced that the government has secured about USD 1.6 billion as a credit facility from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
This financial boost is expected to further stabilise Ghana’s economic landscape.
The Finance Minister also revealed that negotiations with Eurobond holders have concluded successfully, resulting in an additional USD 13.1 billion for the nation.
This negotiation will “lead to a cancellation of USD4.7 billion of our debt and provide debt service relief of USD4.4 billion between 2023 and 2026,” Dr. Amin Adam explained.
Highlighting further savings, the Minister discussed the renegotiated Purchasing Power Agreements (PPAs) with Independent Power Producers, projected to save Ghana USD6.6 billion over the agreements’ lifetimes.
“We have concluded negotiations with five of the seven Independent Power Producers, leading to substantial savings,” he noted.
Source: classfmonline.com
