ACCRA, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- The executive board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved the fifth review of Ghana's reforms, paving the way for the immediate release of 385 million U.S. dollars to boost the country's economic recovery, an IMF press release has said.
The latest disbursement is under a 3-billion-dollar arrangement between the IMF and the West African country to support its economic reforms, which commenced in May 2023.
"Ghana's performance under its Extended Credit Facility -supported reform program has been generally satisfactory. The authorities have shown strong program ownership by decisively implementing ambitious corrective actions after the 2024 policy slippages," said the release issued late Wednesday.
These efforts, the release said, coupled with structural reforms, have driven a stronger-than-anticipated recovery in growth, brought inflation within the Bank of Ghana's target range, and supported robust reserve accumulation.
"Ghana has made progress in strengthening its fiscal position. In the future, maintaining the current course of fiscal policy adjustments and allowing for the enhancement of social programs is crucial for stabilizing public finances, lowering financing requirements, and protecting vulnerable households from the effects of fiscal adjustments," according to the IMF.
It urged the Ghanaian government to continue with reform efforts essential to maintaining macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability, while addressing longstanding structural vulnerabilities.
Ghana's headline inflation, which hit a record high of 54.1 percent in December 2022, eased to 6.3 percent in November, and the economy grew by 5.5 percent in the third quarter.
The central bank slashed its benchmark lending rate to 18 percent at its latest meeting, in November.
Ghana has been recording rapid recovery from a crippling economic downturn marked by ballooning public debt, high fiscal slippage, surging inflation, and foreign exchange instability, following the implementation of the IMF-backed recovery program. ■
