The International Monetary Fund (IMF) team led by Carlo Sdralevich who visited the country to assess the current economic situation after the request for government support has concluded its assessment exercise.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the team expressed the commitment of the Bretton Woods institution to support Ghana.

“We reaffirm our commitment to support Ghana at this difficult time, in line with IMF policies.

Staff will continue to closely monitor the economic and social situation and will engage in the coming weeks with the authorities on the formulation of their enhanced domestic program which could be supported by an IMF agreement and with broad consultation of the parties. stakeholders,” the statement read.

The IMF has recognized the difficult situation in which the country finds itself: “Ghana faces a difficult economic and social situation in an increasingly difficult global environment. The fiscal and debt situation has seriously deteriorated following the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, investor concerns led to credit rating downgrades, capital outflows, loss of access to external markets and increased domestic borrowing costs.

“Furthermore, the global economic shock caused by the war in Ukraine is hitting Ghana at a time when the country is still recovering from the shock of the COVID-19 pandemic and with limited policy space. These adverse developments contributed to slowing economic growth, the accumulation of unpaid bills, a sharp depreciation of the exchange rate and a spike in inflation.

The statement revealed that “the IMF team held initial discussions on a comprehensive reform package to restore macroeconomic stability and anchor debt sustainability. The team has made progress in assessing the economic situation and identifying short-term political priorities. Discussions focused on improving fiscal balances in a sustainable manner while protecting the vulnerable and poor; ensuring the credibility of monetary policy and exchange rate regimes; preserve the stability of the financial sector; and designing reforms to boost growth, create jobs and strengthen governance.

While in the country, the IMF team met with HE Vice President Bawumia, Finance Minister Ofori-Atta and Governor Addison of the Bank of Ghana. The team also met with the parliamentary finance committee, civil society organizations and development partners, including UNICEF and the World Bank.