Mid-yr-budget review: provide measures to reduce public debt -Mona Quartey 

Former Deputy Minister Mona Quartey is asking Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta to provide a roadmap to reduce Ghana’s public debt stock in the mid-year budget review scheduled for July 31, 2023. Her comment follows the latest Bank of Ghana’s summary data shows Ghana’s total debt public debt stock has hit 569.3 billion cedis.

Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta is expected to present mid-year budget review Monday July 31. The presentation is expected to unveil government’s fiscal roadmap for the remainder of the year, focusing on measures to ensure economic stability and growth.

The budget review comes at a time when Ghana’s public debt increased by a fifth in just four months, driven partly by the inclusion of short-term loans from the central bank to the state. Public debt, which excludes state-owned enterprises obligations, rose to 569.3 billion cedis at the end of April according to Bank of Ghana.

Speaking ahead of Mid-year budget review scheduled for July 3, former Deputy Finance Minister Mona Quartey said the Finance Minister should come up with a measures to reduce the huge public debt stock.

Ghana has been grappling with huge energy sector debts forcing Independent Power Producers to nearly shutdown their plants. Energy Expert Dr. Sulemana Yussif wants the Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta to spell out precise plans to fix problems facing the energy sector.