It has emerged that Ghana failed to meet crucial targets under its programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) but government has remained silent over the development.
In approving the disbursement of about $114million for Ghana, the Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) noted that it had to give Ghana a waiver since it could not meet one of the targets set under the programme during the second half of 2015 when it came to the payment of external arrears.
Ghana is also believed to have had some challenges in meeting some other targets under the programme, a development which compelled the IMF Board to move the review meeting from December 2015 to January 13 this year.
In all this the Ministry of Finance has been tightlipped on the matter, except to hail justify the commendation from the IMF over its fiscal consolidation efforts.
The approval followed a successful second staff level review in November, although concerns remained about the country's financial management and rising inflation, the fund said in a statement.
Wednesday's approval brings total disbursements for Ghana to $343.7 million under the programme, which ends next year.
Ghana, a major exporter of cocoa, gold and oil, entered the $918-million financial assistance programme in April, with the aim of restoring economic stability and boosting job growth.
Ghana was once one of the continent's strongest performers, but slumping global commodity prices and a fiscal crisis which drove its debt-to-GDP ratio to more than 70 per cent have put a brake on economic growth.
The government is yet to fully resolve a three-year electricity crisis that has crippled industries and made the government unpopular ahead of general elections later this year.
Ghana is currently faced with a sovereign debt crisis, rising interest costs, policy slippages and external shocks, which have dampened the country’s medium-term prospects.
A freeze on employment into the public sector, except the education and health sectors, is biting hard as persons in need of jobs continue to agitate for public sector employment since the current economic conditions do not support private sector business to create jobs.
Government is also to scrap subsidies for utilities and fuel consumption by ensuring that the automatic adjustment formula is implemented to the core.
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