Government of Ghana goes on a secret borrowing binge

Ghana has been hard up of late

Except for those who have been living under a rock, everyone knows that Ghana, once an African poster child of the Eurobond markets, hit a rocky patch in 2021-2022, defaulted on its international debt in late 2022, followed that up with a painful domestic debt restructuring, apparently the first in Africa, and has since mid-2023 been under an IMF program.

The country’s government, however, kept a good face in front of the world throughout the whole ordeal and has been touting a decisive recovery for much of 2024 to be crowned with upcoming successes in restructuring its international debt.

The whole recovery narrative and the credibility of its IMF sponsorship, nevertheless, rests on Ghana being able to present itself as a new paragon of fiscal discipline. Borrowing wisely and conservatively to spend carefully and thoughtfully is, obviously, the firm ground of such a posture.......