Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has reiterated the relevance of the government’s Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) to securing an International Monitory Fund(IMF) bailout to salvage the country from its current economic crisis.
In an address on Monday, February 6, the sector minister stressed that the programme is designed to help the country recover from its current economic difficulties, hence the need for all bondholders to rally behind it.
“It is crucial for groups and individuals to consider the merits of the enhanced DDEP as well as the need for economic stability and sign up by tomorrow to make it a successful one.
“Let every Ghanaian be encouraged that the DDEP will bring us to a place of stability, economic recovery and transformational growth. But we must do this together”, the Minister said.
While calling on domestic investors to sign on to the programme, he cautioned that if the programme does not yield its intended results, it could cause further havoc amidst the prevailing economic crisis.
He said the DDEP aims at tackling macroeconomic variables while creating an avenue for the economy to bounce back. Therefore if it fails, the consequences may be dire for the entire country.
The appeal by Mr Ofori-Atta came on the eve of the deadline for individual bondholders and other domestic investors to sign on to the government’s debt exchange programme.
The programme, since its proposal, has been met with many public agitations and resentments, with many citizens against its implementation.
According to the dissenters, the DDEP will erode their savings and bring them to a place of need and lack, hence their refusal.
As a testament to the agitations, a group calling itself the Individual Bondholders Forum earlier impressed upon the government to exempt them from the programme.
After a series of calls and pressure, the Finance Minister, in a meeting with the leadership of the group, assured that individual bondholders could choose not to participate in the programme.
Meanwhile, another resenting group, known as the Pensioners Bondholders Forum, today picketed at the Ministry of Finance to demand their immediate exclusion from the programme.
The protestors, including some aggrieved retirees, said they do not believe in the safety of their investments, hence the need to be exempted from the debt exchange programme.
But the government, however, insists that the DDEP is a crucial initiative to help revitalize the economy, which has been on its knees in recent times.