With the support of the World Bank, the government has successfully concluded the process of rationalizing certain social intervention programs, including the Free Senior High School (SHS) initiative.
Some of these programs have drawn increased attention from the nation’s development partners due to concerns about rising expenditures.
The primary objective is to encourage the government to reduce the country’s growing debt burden and create additional fiscal space. As part of this rationalization, certain programs may undergo reviews regarding their funding.
Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta will provide further insights into this development during an upcoming episode of the PM Express Business Edition, scheduled to air on Thursday, October 19, 2023.
“These are parts of the structural benchmarks that were needed for the (IMF) approval,” he said.
Mr. Ofori-Atta emphasized the importance of reviewing these programs to facilitate the disbursement of approximately $500 million by the World Bank under the IMF program for Ghana by December 2023.
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He further revealed that a total of around 17 programs were evaluated and will be included in the 2024 budget, with comprehensive information provided.
Characterizing the forthcoming funds from the World Bank as well-timed, Mr. Ofori-Atta underscored that this development underscores the government’s commitment to meeting all the necessary benchmarks for fully restoring the economy to a path of recovery.
“If you look at everything, it continues to show the favour that we have found and the hard break that we have done”, he said.
Additionally, Mr. Ofori-Atta mentioned that the Ghana Financial Stabilization Fund will lead to an injection of approximately $250 million from the World Bank to bolster this financial institution.
He expressed optimism that this funding will contribute to the reinforcement of bank recapitalization efforts, especially local banks that have been significantly impacted by the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme
