The Official Creditor Committee (OCC) and the government have successfully concluded a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the debt treatment that was decided upon in January 2024. Ghana’s OCC, which was co-chaired by France and China, was essential to this accomplishment. In order to restore Ghana’s long-term debt sustainability, the MoU formalises the agreement in principle struck with Official Creditors in January. During the programme time supported by the Fund, the agreement’s financial terms stay unaltered and offer substantial relief from debt service. This will make it possible to allocate funds for important projects like infrastructure, healthcare, and education.
Formalising the OCC agreement is anticipated to facilitate the adoption of the second review of the Fund-supported Post Covid-19 Programme for Economic Growth (PC-PEG) by the IMF Executive Board. This will allow the next tranche of US$360 million in IMF finance to be disbursed. The agreement of the IMF Board ought to prompt further financial support from development partners, especially the World Bank. Additionally, the agreement helps fortify Ghana’s current negotiations with private creditors, with whom it is still committed to reaching a similar accord as soon as feasible. The MoU will now be signed by each official creditor in accordance with its own internal protocols. The provisions will be enforced by bilateral agreements with each member of the OCC after they are signed.a
“We call upon our official creditors to fast-track their internal processes towards the signing of the
bilateral agreements. Ghana continues to engage in good faith with all commercial external creditors, striving to finalize restructuring agreements that respect Ghana’s need for debt relief and the comparability of treatment principle.”
“Ghana also reiterates its firm commitment to remain in arrears with its external commercial creditors until agreements compatible with the comparability of treatment principle are reached”, Minister for Finance, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam mentioned in a statement issued by the Ministry.
“The Ministry of Finance on behalf of the Republic of Ghana extends our gratitude to all members of the OCC, particularly the committee’s co-chairs, China and France, for their unwavering commitment to assisting our country in resolving its debt issues.
“This landmark agreement marks an extraordinary milestone in Ghana’s debt restructuring journey and will further strengthen our ambitious reform agenda with the strong support of our development
partners”, the statement concluded.
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