President Nana
Akufo-Addo has disclosed that his government will begin rigorous expenditure
cuts to meet the conditionalities attached to the $3 billion bailout by the
International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Mr. Akufo-Addo
said his government is eager to turn the fortunes of the country around and
will do everything possible to ensure that the ailing economy is revived.
Speaking at the
Qatar-Africa Economic Forum in Doha, Mr. Akufo-Addo expressed confidence that
the IMF bailout will help revive the Ghanaian economy.
“Rationalisation
of our expenditure, rationalization of government expenditure is something that
we have given the assurance. Domestic revenue mobilization is absolutely
critical for us and already we are seeing signs.
“We have a
fiscal responsibility law in Ghana that has pegged our fiscal deficit at 5
percent but already we are way above that and the sooner we can bring that to
more acceptable levels the better for us.”
President
Akufo-Addo added that Ghana will soon return to the International market to
borrow to fund important infrastructural projects. He added that even though
his government is in no rush to return to the international market it makes
sense to take advantage of the market now.
“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 Finance
Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta had earlier emphasized Ghana’s commitment to fiscal
responsibility, stating that Ghana will not hastily seek to return to the
international capital market for borrowing.
Speaking at a
press conference on Thursday (May 18), Ofori-Atta highlighted the importance of
revenue measures and prudent expenditure management in ensuring financial
stability and sustainability.
He further
acknowledged the revenue-enhancing measures outlined in the budget,
particularly improvements at the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), which are
expected to provide the necessary resources for the country’s progress.
“There is no
rush in going back to the international capital market. Our expectation is that,
by managing our expenditure and increasing our revenue, we will have the
resources to address our needs.”
0 comments:
Post a Comment