IMF loan: Government hopeful of reaching agreement with official creditors next week

Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, says he is optimistic that Ghana will reach an agreement with its official creditors by next week.

Ghana is seeking to get its official creditors to restructure about 5.4 billion dollars which makes up about 27 per cent of the country’s $20 billion external debt.

This was one of the conditions for the International Monetary Fund’s Executive Board to approve the second tranche of a $600 million payout under the Fund’s $3 billion bailout program.

Speaking to journalists at the Securities Exchange Commission’s Capital Market Conference, the Minister stated that a continuous evaluation based on comparable treatment is being conducted to ensure that creditors are treated fairly by the restructuring.

He said discussions on the cut-off date—the date beyond which new loans would not be restructured—are also a major issue that would be addressed among creditors in the coming days.

Mr Ofori-Atta stated that the government has fulfilled its side of the engagement and is now awaiting the Official Creditors Committee’s formal answer, as it would be comfortable with whatever cut-off date proposed by the creditors.