World Bank Country Director for Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, Robert Taliercio, has cautioned Ghana against rushing back to international capital markets, warning that such a move would be premature and risky.
According to him, an early return could undermine investor confidence and reverse the gains made under Ghana’s debt restructuring efforts, exposing the country to unsustainable borrowing costs.
Taliercio made these remarks at the launch of the World Bank’s latest Public Finance Review report, titled Building the Foundations for a Resilient and Equitable Fiscal Policy.
His warning follows Ghana’s successful restructuring of its domestic and external debts, which secured significant relief under the $3 billion IMF Extended Credit Facility (ECF) programme.
“The risk now is falling into complacency with these achievements and returning to a business-as-usual mindset – a recurring error in the past. Ghana has requested a record 17 IMF programs. As a result, the country has been under active IMF programs for 40 out of 68 years of its history,” he stated.
He further stressed that a premature return to international capital markets could send the wrong signal and lead to unsustainable borrowing costs.
Since 2022, Ghana has been locked out of international capital markets for dollar funding due to high debt levels, sluggish economic growth, and a weak balance of payments.
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