The September 2002 meeting in Washington DC between a Ghana government delegation led by Finance Minister, Yaw Osafo-Maafo and the Managing Director of the IMF, Hurst Kohler was tumultuous to say the least, according to sources to the IMF. The atmosphere was tense and Mr Kohler allegedly delivered a stern lecture to the Ghana delegation.
“The programme is not on course; in fact, it is off course”, was how Mr Kohler opened the meeting. “You have met only one of the conditionalities. The planned fast track sale of state holdings in 12 companies have not taken place. You have not divested the Telecom shares, you have not privatized water production and distribution”.
“Ghana Commercial Bank, National Investment Bank and Electricity Company of Ghana is yet to be sold. Tema Oil Refinery’s debt has increased instead of being wiped off. Indeed you are playing politics with the Ghanaian economy”, would be a fairly accurate summary of the speech that Mr Kohler is said to have delivered to Yaw Osafo Maafo and his team.
In response, Mr Osafo Maafo could only meekly apologise for his government’s inability to keep the Fund programme on track and blamed the NDC government for bequeathing to them an economy that has made it difficult for them to keep to the programme. When the Ghanaian delegation got up to go, the IMF allegedly asked about the controversial “IFC” loan and Senior Minister, J. H. Mensah told them that the NDC has publicized the whole transaction.
