Veep to speak on economy and Ghana’s engagement with IMF on July 14
The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia will on July 14, 2022, speak on the government’s decision to engage the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a recovery programme.
The address will be delivered at the official launch of the collaboration between the Accra Business School and the South East Technological University, Ireland.
This was confirmed in a social media post by Gideon Boako, a spokesperson for the Vice President.
According to him, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia will use the opportunity to speak about “current national economic developments and government’s engagement with the IMF.”
Mr. Boako explained that the Vice President had already agreed to speak at the event before the government decided to seek support from the IMF.
“He will perform a double role addressing the theme for the occasion and at the same time speaking to current national economic developments and government’s engagement with the IMF,” parts of the Facebook post said.
Meanwhile, a team from the fund led by Mission Chief, Carlo Sdralevich arrived in Ghana on Tuesday and has since commenced in-person engagements with officials of the government.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is expected to lead a task force of economists, ministers, and advisors. At the same time, the Ministry of Finance will put together a team of economists, finance and social technocrats for the discussions.
The government hopes to secure about US$2 billion from IMF to shore up the country’s reserves and build buffers to mitigate the hardships in the country.
The discussions are scheduled for 6 July 2022 to 13 July 2022.
Background
The government is scheduled to engage the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to provide support for a program to reverse the economic challenges faced by the country, Minister of Information Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has revealed.
The country is faced with high debt, low revenue, rising inflation, steep depreciation of the cedi against other major currencies, and a general rise in the cost of living attributed to external factors such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The government had indicated that it wasn’t considering a program from the Bretton Wood institution after 16 bailouts from past governments.
However, after a Cabinet meeting on Thursday, 30 June 2022, President Akufo-Addo has given the green light for interactions to commence.
“The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has authorized Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta to commence formal engagements with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), inviting the Fund to support an economic program put together by the Government of Ghana.”
“This follows a telephone conversation between the President and the IMF Managing Director, Miss Kristalina Georgievs, conveying Ghana’s decision to engage with the Fund,” a statement issued by Mr. Oppong Nkrumah said on Friday, 1 July 2022.
The engagement with the IMF will seek to provide a balance of payment support as part of a broader effort to quicken Ghana’s build back in the face of glaring challenges.