IMF support will restore confidence in the economy - Alan Kyerematen

Former Minister of Trade and Industry, Alan Kyerematen, has said he is optimistic the bailout programme government is seeking from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will help bring the economy back on track.

He further said the IMF programme will restore investor confidence in the economy.

Delivering an address on Tuesday, January 10, 2023, Alan Kyerematen said, "I have no doubt that the anticipated International Monetary Fund (IMF) Support Package will restore confidence in our economy, and bring it back to the pre-COVID levels."

Ghana is targeting $3 billion over a three-year period from the IMF once an agreement on a programme is finalized.

On December 13, 2022, the International Monetary Fund announced that it has reached a staff-level agreement with Ghana on economic policies and reforms to be supported by a new three-year arrangement under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) of about US$3 billion.

According to the IMF, the authorities’ strong reform programme is aimed at restoring the macroeconomic stability of Ghana's economy.

Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund has increased its interest rates on loans given to member countries.

This comes after IMF increased its lending rate on Special Drawing Rights (SDR) from 0.89% to 2.99%.

The hike, which represents 2.1 percentage points took effect on Friday, January 6, 2023.

This means that the interest rate on the US$3 billion financial bailout programme government of Ghana is seeking from the IMF will shoot up.

ESA/FNOQ