Finance Minister Blames Cedi Depreciation For Ghana's Ballooning Debt
- The Finance Minister, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, has blamed the country's ballooning debt on the cedi's rapid depreciation
- The country's debt has risen to a staggering GH¢761.1 billion, equivalent to $51.1 billion from GH¢587.7 billion, equivalent to $53.5 billion
- The minister also blamed the situation on disbursement from multilateral institutions and domestic budget financing
Finance Minister Dr Mohammed Amin Adam has blamed the cedi's depreciation for Ghana’s ballooning debt.
The country’s debt is now at a staggering GH¢761.1 billion, equivalent to $51.1 billion.
Source: Getty Images
The nominal central government debt previously stood at GH¢587.7 billion, equivalent to $53.5 billion.
Dr Amin Adam shared this at the Finance Ministry during the monthly Economic Update on Thursday, August 29, 2024.
PAY ATTENTION: All celebrity news in one place! Follow YEN's Facebook Broadcast channel and read on the go.
He said the increase in Cedi terms and the decrease in US dollar terms is largely due to the Cedi’s depreciation against the dollar.
He also blamed the situation on disbursement from multilateral institutions and domestic budget financing.
Ghana cedi reaches GH¢16 to one dollar
According to Joy News, the Ghanaian cedi has reached an average of GH¢16 to the US dollar on the retail market.
However, Financial Analyst Professor Williams Peprah said there was no cause for alarm and suggested that weekend activity may have caused the deprecation.
Peprah said he expected the local currency to appreciate and hover at around GH¢15.90 until November 2024.
The recent deprecation comes after the International Monetary Fund lifted restrictions on dollar auctions by the Bank of Ghana.
As of July 2024, the Ghana cedi depreciated by about 19.6% to the US dollar on the interbank forex market.
Against the English pound, the cedi has so far depreciated by 20.8% and was trading at GH¢19.10 as of July 2024.
It has also lost 18.4% in value to the euro and, as of July 2024, was selling at GH¢16.09.
Ghana cedi to depreciate modestly
Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that the Ghana cedi was expected to depreciate modestly between now and the December elections.
This has followed following steep falls earlier in the year, which saw the cedi depreciate by over 19.6 per cent against the dollar as of July 2024.
Bloomberg reported that Ghana may end the year at GH¢15.97 per dollar, according to Oyinkansola Samuel, an analyst at FirstRand Ltd.’s RMB Nigeria unit.
“We expect the depreciation pace to slow going into the end of the year as multilateral disbursements and ample reserve accumulation improve market sentiments," Samuel said.
Proofread by Berlinda Entsie, journalist and copy editor at YEN.com.gh
PAY ATTENTION: Stay informed and follow us on Google News!
Source: YEN.com.gh
