He blamed the Russian-Ukrainian crisis as well as the COVID-19 pandemic as the fundamental facts that have confronted the economic challenges of Ghana.
According to him, “I believe that we need to have this conversation by acknowledging a few fundamental facts. First, it appears currently, that our country is confronted with economic challenges which have been primarily occasioned and driven by the combined effect of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the Russia-Ukraine conflict. So this is a fact that we cannot run away from.”
Speaking on Metro TV’s Good Evening Ghana, Alan stated that “Secondly, going to the IMF ought not to be seen as a negative policy choice. I believe that the negativity associated with going to the IMF for support has been driven by the rather rancorous political discourse over the years. It doesn’t matter whether it is the NDC or the NPP that is leading that discourse.
“I believe that there are certain fundamental issues that need to be discussed dispassionately as a united country driven by one national objective rather than us politicizing such critical issues.”
After promising to prosper without international aid, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s government is seeking international financial assistance to address an economic crisis.
Following protests in Accra by a pressure group called Arise Ghana over rising inflation, the government has announced it will hold talks with the IMF on a support package—ending a policy of not seeking external assistance.
Meanwhile, officials of the IMF met Finance Minister Ken Ofori Atta and some officials of the Finance Ministry on Thursday, July 7, 2022, as the fund officially begins work on the bailout being sought by the country.
The IMF team will also examine the government’s fiscal expenditure and projections for the year 2022.
