With very few exceptions, the Bank of Ghana broadly met the majority of its economic performance goals, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation led by Joël Toujas-Bernaté concluded following its two-week visit to the capital city of Accra.
The sojourn focused on the third evaluation of its kind concerning Ghana’s financial outlook by the IMF’s Extended Credit Facility. Toujas-Bernaté revealed that only small variations in the wage bill and net domestic assets were notable.
Factors affecting the final performance numbers included a more challenging global arena — bringing with it lower prices and some internal power shortages — but overall, the team said, the country demonstrated 4 percent economic growth in 2015, largely unscathed by accompanying inflation.
Toujas-Bernaté and his associates found that the bank experienced a decreased cash deficit with better than average repayments; new tax laws and payroll procedure progress; and ongoing public financial management reform.
“Fiscal consolidation needs to continue,” Toujas-Bernaté said. “[Bank of Ghana] remains committed to maintaining an appropriate monetary policy stance to bring inflation down.”
Additionally, Ghana will develop a strategy to handle challenges posed by state-owned enterprises in the energy sector, which is said to be crucial to “avoid additional fiscal pressures and possible spillovers on the banking system, as well as to sustain the improvement in electricity delivery achieved recently.”
Team members thanked their hosts for their hospitality, having met with President John Dramani Mahama, Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, Finance Minister Seth Terkper, Bank of Ghana Gov. Abdul-Nashiri Issahaku and Minister of Labor Haruna Iddrisu.
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