We have worked hard to reverse breached quantitative targets, we will build resilience – Ato Forson

In its quest to restore and sustain macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability, the government has pledged to build resilience through strong and ambitious structural reforms and lay the foundations for stronger and more inclusive growth and job creation while protecting the poor and the vulnerable.

According to Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, the government remains fully committed to the implementation of the programme and will do all it takes to ensure that the objectives of the programme are on track despite the challenges it faced in programme implementation.

Addressing the press after the conclusion of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission to Ghana, Dr. Forson said although there were some structural benchmarks and quantitative targets under the programme that were breached at the time the government took office, it has worked tirelessly to reverse the situation and, in some cases, fast-tracked the implementation of some structural reforms ahead of their deadlines.

“To begin with, pragmatic and bold measures have been put in place to address the large payable build-up in 2024 which resulted in large primary deficit compared to programmed modest surplus”, he said.

According to him, these measures are aimed at strengthening the spending commitment control system, eliminating the accumulation of payables, enhancing budget credibility and promoting fiscal and debt sustainability.

The measures include commissioning the Auditor General together with two international Audit firms to audit the payables and commitments to validate their legitimacy and values and provide recommendations for corrective measures and passing an amendment to the Procurement Act to ensure that the issuance of commitment authorisation by the Minister for Finance shall be a prerequisite for all central government procurement that comes under the Authority or the Central Tender Review Committee.

In conclusion, the Finance Minister assured Ghanaians, the IMF and other key stakeholders that he will personally lead the charge to ensure that the implementation of all commitments under the Fund-supported programme necessary to enable the approval of the 4th Review by the IMF Board are met.