Ken Ofori-Atta
GHANA HAS not missed out on the second tranche disbursement of a $600 million loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), according to the Ministry of Finance.
Earlier reports had suggested that Ghana had missed a November 1 deadline. However, the ministry explained that the date was in fact an indicative timeline for the completion of the first review, which was achieved on October 6.
A statement copied to DAILY GUIDE, explained that the said November 1, 2023, was rather, an indicative timeline for the completion of the first review, which was achieved on October 6.
“There is no 1st November, 2023 timeline for disbursement of the second tranche of the IMF funds… The exact timeline for the board date is determined by the IMF Executive Board,” the statement noted.
The IMF Board is expected to meet in the third week of November over the approval of Ghana’s Staff Level Agreement (SLA) for the disbursement of another US$600 million, having completed a first review of the US$3 billion loan-support programme.
“It is trite knowledge that the IMF Executive Board Meeting to approve Ghana’s first review, must occur before the disbursement of the next tranche of IMF funds,” the statement explained.
At the end of the Staff Mission, the Fund noted that Ghana needed to reach an agreement with its external creditors.
The agreement would spell out specific debt treatment that external creditors would agree on with Ghana as part of the implementation of government’s ongoing three-year US$3 billion IMF loan-support programme.
On this matter, the ministry stated that: “The Government of Ghana is making good progress under its strategic plan to engage the Official Creditor Committee (OCC) of the Paris Club; secure a Memorandum of Understanding on debt restructuring; and go before the IMF Executive Board for approval of the first review.”
The Ministry of Finance encouraged the public and media houses, in particular, to seek the facts and truth about any information that comes to their attention, whenever they are in doubt.
BY Vincent Kubi