Ghana’s Total Public Debt now 43.8% of GDP – Finance Minister
Ghana’s total public debt has declined significantly from GHS 726.7 billion at end-December 2024 to GHS 613 billion as of end-June 2025, representing a GHS 113.7 billion reduction within a six-month period.
The decline translates into a negative 15.6% rate of debt accumulation.
Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, who made the disclosure during the presentation of the 2025 Mid-Year Budget Review to Parliament, attributed the drop to government’s commitment to fiscal discipline, prudent debt management policies, and a stronger cedi performance over the period.
According to the Minister, the substantial reduction is also reflected in Ghana’s improved debt-to-GDP ratio, which dropped sharply from 61.8% at the end of 2024 to 43.8% as of June 2025 – an 18 percentage point improvement in just six months.
Providing further details, Dr Forson stated that the share of external debt in the total debt portfolio had also declined. Foreign debt, which accounted for 57.4% of the country’s total debt stock as of December 2024, now stands at 49%, a development he says enhances Ghana’s overall debt sustainability outlook.
The decline in the public debt stock comes amid Ghana’s ongoing implementation of the IMF-supported Post-COVID-19 Programme for Economic Growth (PC-PEG), as well as the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP), which has contributed to the restructuring and reprofiling of the debt portfolio.
The Minister also hinted that government will continue to prioritise debt sustainability in the medium term, noting that enhanced revenue mobilisation, expenditure efficiency, and exchange rate stability will remain key pillars of fiscal policy going forward.
