Ken Ofori-Atta to meet INF officials as bail-out discussion begins
A meeting is said to be in the offing between officials of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta and some key officials of the Finance Ministry as the Fund officially commences work on the bailout programme being sought by the country.
The IMF team will today look through the government’s fiscal expenditure and projections for the year 2022.
Also, the team will look at the public sector wage bill, negotiations, and reforms in the government payroll as part of the deliberations.
Meanwhile, labour unions, including the Trades Union Congress (TUC), had lambasted the government for its decision to seek support from the fund.
They lament that the government resorting to the IMF means the economy will likely reel under several restrictions and controls to be imposed by the fund.
Civil society organisations also expressed their displeasure at the government’s request for a bail-out from the IMF.
They corroborated the concerns of TUC, saying the economic hardship being endured by the people of Ghana will get worse with IMF restrictions.
Meanwhile, the IMF’s social media platforms have been inundated with comments from Ghanaian netizens warning the fund against bailing the Ghanaian government out unless enough fiscal disciplinary measures are put in place.
The IMF team will consist of senior officials from the Fund as well as local staff based here in Ghana.
Analysts suggest that it would take at least three months for a programme to be agreed upon between the parties.
