Don’t borrow for another government to pay – Terkper to government

Former Minister of Finance, Seth Terkper, has said that “borrowing is inevitable” for governments however loans should not be left for subsequent governments to come and pay.

“It should be clear to all of us Ghanaians that now, no government can say that it will not borrow. I think it should be very clear to us by now,” he said, adding “If you must borrow then learn to pay for the loan. Don’t borrow and expect that another government will come and pay for it and this is what Ghanaians should expect from our government”.

Mr Terkper who was commenting on Ghana’s debt stock and how it can be managed told Citi FM’s Bernard Avle on Monday, 26 March 2018 that: “borrowing should be planned”.

For him, parliament should be firm on the terms and how the government intends to borrow as well as total amounts to be borrowed.

He stressed that governments should not borrow to spend on consumption but productive sectors that will help improve the economy and generate some revenue.

Ghana’s public debt stock is now GHS142.5 billion as of December 2017, the Bank of Ghana’s latest Summary of Economic Data has revealed.

The latest figure translates to a debt-to-GDP of 70 per cent.

While external debt stood at $17.2 million representing 37 per cent of the total debt stock as of December 2017, internal debt hit GHS66.7 billion, representing a Debt-to-GDP ratio of 32.7 per cent.