The government of Ghana and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have achieved a staff-level agreement after a successful review of the fourth Extended Credit Facility (ECF) program.
The review, which began on April 2, 2025, came to an end on Tuesday, April 15, 2025.
Addressing the media in Accra on Tuesday, April 15, the Mission Chief of the IMF to Ghana, Stéphane Roudet, said that, subject to approval by the IMF Executive Board, Ghana will have access to approximately $370 million.
This brings the total IMF financial support disbursement under the arrangement since May 2023 to around $2.4 billion.
“You will remember that this program was approached by the IMF Board in May 2023 and that its key objectives are to restore macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability while laying the foundations for stronger and more inclusive growth. By design, the program reviews take place twice a year, and the mission that concludes today is intended for the fourth review of the program. You may have seen the press release that we just issued about half an hour ago.
“Today I am pleased to announce that we have successfully reached a staff-level agreement on the fourth review of Ghana’s economic program. This agreement, as usual, is subject to the approval of our Executive Board, and once the Executive Board completes the review, Ghana will have access to about $370 million, bringing the total IMF financial support disbursed under the arrangement since May 2023 to some $2.4 billion.”
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The assessment revealed that Ghana’s external position has continued to improve, with the Bank of Ghana accumulating international reserves beyond program objectives. Economic growth in 2024 was also stronger than expected.
However, Mr. Roudet noted that overall performance deteriorated significantly at the end of 2024 due to policy slippage before the general election.
“The external position has continued to improve with rapid accumulation of international results by the Bank of Ghana, and indeed, the accumulation of results has clearly outperformed the program objectives.
“Economic growth in 2024 was also stronger than expected. However, overall performance with respect to the program’s targets and objectives deteriorated significantly at the end of 2024, reflecting policy slippages in the run-up to the general elections.
“Both the government’s primary balance and inflation missed the target. Several structural reforms have also been delayed”.
Mr. Roudet noted that some milestones have been missed, prompting action. He said since then, the authorities adopted bold corrective measures in several areas to ensure observance of the program objectives for 2025 and beyond.
In particular, he said the authorities “have adopted a raft of corrective policy and structural measures to address the budgetary implications and root causes of the 2024 fiscal slippages”.
“The Bank of Ghana has also tightened the monetary policy stance at its last NPC meeting to support a reduction in inflation.”
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Mr. Roudet said Ghana has also continued to make progress in reaching agreement on the debt restructuring, towards reaching agreement with other external creditors to finalize the comprehensive debt restructuring.
The Minister of Finance, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, emphasized that the Government of Ghana remains committed to implementing the program.
Dr. Forson emphasized that the agreement marks a significant step towards resetting Ghana’s economy.
“This marks a significant journey in our collective effort towards resetting the economy for the Ghana we all want.”
“We remain fully committed to the implementation of the program, and we’ll do all it takes to ensure that the objectives of the program are on track despite the challenges we inherited.
“Although there were a number of structural benchmarks and quantitative targets under the program that were breached, at the time we took office we have worked tirelessly to reverse the situation and in some cases fast-tracked the implementation of some key structural reforms ahead of their deadline and embarked on additional reforms.”
The minister stressed that pragmatic and bold measures have been put in place to address the large payable build-up as of the end of 2024, which resulted in large primary deficits compared to the program’s modest surplus.
“These measures aim at strengthening our spending commitment control system, eliminating the accumulation of payables, enhancing budget credibility, and promoting fiscal and debt sustainability.
“These measures include the following. One, we have commissioned the Auditor General together with two international audit firms to audit the payables and commitments to validate their legitimacy and value and provide recommendations for collective actions.”
The Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiama, reiterated that achieving macroeconomic stability and inclusive growth is a process. He said the Bank of Ghana stands committed to ensuring that all program objectives are met.
“Going forward, we recognize that the path to full macroeconomic stability and inclusive growth is a process; it is not an event. The Bank of Ghana stands committed to ensuring that all program objectives are met.
“And let me emphasize our meeting is consistent with our own medium-term objectives of establishing a conducive environment for business and economic resilience”.
The next tranche of IMF disbursement is expected in three months.