The Ministry of Finance has clarified that there is no 1st November, 2023 timeline for disbursement of the second tranche of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) funds.
The Ministry of Finance made the clarification after its attention was been drawn to what it calls a misleading publication on by an Accra-based online portal, about Ghana missing a purported deadline of 1st November, 2023, for the disbursement of the second tranche of International Monetary (IMF) Funds.
In the statement signed by the Finance Ministry, it said "There is no 1st November, 2023 timeline for disbursement of the second tranche of the IMF funds. No deadline has been set by the IMF for the second tranche disbursement, which is due to take place after the IMF Executive Board approves the first review
"The publication by Myjoyonline references Table 9 on page 72 of the Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies (MEFP) published on 17th May, 2023 by the IMF. The November 1 stated in this table is an indicative timeline for completion of the first review, based on the observance of the end-June 2023 performance criteria"
The statement further explained that the first review was successfully completed on 6th October, 2023, culminating in a Staff Level Agreement (SLA) on the same day.
"Whilst the SLA milestone is an important step towards unlocking the second tranche of $600 million under the programme, the timeline set by the Executive Board for the consideration and approval of the first review, is not 1st November, 2023 as published by Myjoyonline"
It added that the exact timeline for the Board date is determined by the IMF Executive Board.
"External debt restructuring negotiations are progressing smoothly. The Government of Ghana is making good progress in accordance with its strategic plan to engage the Official Creditor Committee (OCC) of the Paris Club; secure a Memorandum of Understanding on debt restructuring; and go before the IMF Executive Board for approval of the first review"
"Myjoyonline’s misinformation about a 1st November deadline for disbursement of IMF Funds contradicts its own publication of 2nd November, 2023. It is trite knowledge that the IMF Executive Board Meeting to approve Ghana’s first review, must occur before the disbursement of the next tranche of IMF Funds. On 2nd November, 2023, Myjoyonline published an article titled, “IMF Executive Board to meet in 3rd week of November, Ofori-Atta hints” which clearly contradicts the false publication of a 1st November deadline"
The Ministry of Finance therefore encouraged the general public and media houses in particular, to seek the facts and truth about any information that comes to their attention, by reaching out to the Ministry for clarification whenever they are in doubt.
Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith
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