IMF Bailout: Finance Minister expresses confidence in country’s ability to navigate tough times ahead
Ghana’s Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has expressed confidence in the country’s ability to navigate the tough times ahead. Speaking in an interview, Ofori-Atta noted that the government is committed to ensuring that Ghana and its investor community will be able to weather the challenges facing the economy.
Ofori-Atta’s remarks come as Ghana receives massive assurances of support from the international community concerning the country’s IMF bailout bid. The minister noted that he was pleased with the show of support, adding that it was testament to the hard work the country has put in to ensure that it got the IMF deal as soon as possible.
“We have worked hard as a country to get here and we have stuck to it through the difficult times as you know, especially through the debt exchange programme and I think the world recognizes that we are prepared to take responsibility and share in the burden of what we have to do. But still, clearly, I believe God’s favour is on the country and it’s really up to us to work hard so that we can get through this programme,” he said.
The Finance Minister was confident that all the measures taken by the government to raise revenue and manage the country’s debt levels were “on the right path.” He emphasized that the government is committed to ensuring expenditure controls, raising revenue, and ensuring that the country’s resources are not wasted.
But despite the government’s efforts, the road ahead is far from smooth. Ghana’s economy has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the country’s debt levels are now approaching unsustainable levels. In an effort to address these challenges, Ghana is seeking a $1 billion bailout from the IMF, a move that has received the support of the international community.
Ofori-Atta acknowledged that the country is facing difficulties, but he expressed confidence that Ghana will emerge stronger from the crisis. “The pressure is to do your best, understand that there will be bit difficulties but you’ll have to take the community across the Jordan and that’s what we intend to do irrespective of the difficulties,” he said.
The Finance Minister also stressed the importance of learning from Ghana’s experience with the IMF deal. “But what do we as a nation learn from that? How do we ensure expenditure controls, commitments to that, raise our revenue and ensure that we spend what we earn? And me I think that will be the issues the country has to contend with. Understanding how to protect the public purse and ensuring we all pay our taxes and we all don’t waste government resources,” he said.
Ken Ofori-Atta remains optimistic about the country’s ability to navigate the challenges facing the economy. Despite the difficulties ahead, he believes that Ghana is on the right path and that the government’s commitment to fiscal discipline and prudent economic management will help the country emerge stronger from the crisis.
