Former Finance Minister, Seth Terkpe, says there will not be any miracle to save the ailing economy as expected by Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta. According to him, it will take the country five years to recover from the economic challenges considering the level of debt the administration has piled down.
Mr. Ofori-Atta in his engagement with the media on the IMF negotiations pointed out that the government is looking forward to a miracle like that of Ireland in the 80s for an economic rebound.
But, speaking on the Morning Starr with Francis Abban Mr Terkpe expressed shock at the level of deterioration of Ghana’s economy to the point the World Bank has put the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio above 100 percent. Mr Terkpe further stated that only prudent policies will salvage the economy.
“So the miracle is where we are, it has to do with the future and it’s about real hard work. Using all our experience from Dr. Botchway’s time to sub the remaining number of the 17 or 18 programs that we have done with the Fund.
“It is when we have mastered this that we can wean ourselves off the IMF which you must do cautiously because you will face a crisis and the rest. So what you have to do is have your own home grown policy and reserve the right to go to the IMF when you have a genuine crisis,” he advised.
Meanwhile, the Africa Pulse Report by the World Bank that places Ghana’s debt at a frightening percentage level. The World Bank’s report for October 2022 indicated Ghana’s debt will jump to 104.6 percent of GDP, from 76.6 percent a year earlier, by the close of this year 2022.
According to its October 2022 Africa Pulse Report, this comes amid a widened government deficit, massive weakening of the cedi, and rising debt service costs.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM
