Time to instill discipline, we're 'way above' 5% fiscal deficit ceiling - Akufo-Addo admits

President Nana Akufo-Addo has said Ghana's fiscal deficit is "way above" the five per cent ceiling set by the fiscal responsibility law, indicating that there was a need to bring it down, as part of measures to meet the dictates of the International Monetary Fund vis-a-vis the recently-approved US$3 billion bailout by the Bretton Wood institution for the West African country.

In line with that, the president said his government is committed to cutting expenditure.

Speaking at the Qatar-Africa Economic Forum in Doha, President Akufo-Addo said the “rationalisation of our expenditure - rationalisation of government expenditure - is something that we have given the assurance [about]," adding, "domestic revenue mobilisation is absolutely critical for us, and, already, we are seeing signs."

Also, he said: "We have a fiscal responsibility law in Ghana that has pegged our fiscal deficit at five per cent but, already, we are way above that," noting: "And the sooner we can bring that to more acceptable levels, the better for us."

The president also said following the approval of the US$3-billion extended credit facility for Ghana by the IMF, the country could now return to the international market to borrow more.

"We have positioned ourselves to be able to go back into the international market which had been a source of funding for us during the first three or four years of our government," the president said, but pointed out that even though his government was in no rush to do so, it makes sense to him to take advantage of global savings.