IMF cautions against premature relaxation of stabilization policies in African economies
21st November 2023 2:58:02 PM
2 mins read
As some sub-Saharan African nations, Ghana included, are on the path to economic recovery from recent shocks, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) issues a warning against prematurely relaxing stabilization policies.
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In Ghana, Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta informed Parliament about the government's efforts to steer the nation's economy toward growth.
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Ofori-Atta attributed the ongoing economic recovery to the swift implementation of robust fiscal and monetary measures throughout the past year and the first half of 2023.
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“So far, growth in 2023 has been more resilient than expected, inflation has declined in line with the fundamentals, the fiscal and external balances have improved, and the exchange rate has stabilised,” he said when he delivered the 2024 budget statement in the House on Wednesday, November 15.
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The Akufo-Addo administration is committed to upholding discipline in order to keep the economy stable, he added.
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After the government finished the first review of the three-year, $3 billion International Monetary Fund External Credit Facility (IMF-ECF) program successfully, he said the country had turned the corner in terms of the economic difficulties.
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“We turned the corner when we completed the IMF first review,” he told Parliament while presenting the 2024 budget statement on Wednesday, November 15.
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He further assured that the government is poised to “maintain stability and keep growing. and ensure increased growth, currency stability”
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“We turned the corner when inflation started declining from 54 1 in December to 35.2 in October 2023, he added. “The recovery is indeed real and is here to stay,” he further assured.
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“To ensure that the coming rebound is more than just a transitory glimpse of sunshine, it is important for authorities to guard against a premature relaxation of stabilization policies, while also focusing on reforms to both claw back lost ground from the four-year crisis and also to create new space to address the region's pressing development needs,” the IMF said.
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