The International Monetary Fund [IMF] has warned that China could take over Ghana’s mineral resources over unpaid loans.
According to its report, China will have the right to use proceeds from Ghana’s oil, cocoa, bauxite, or even electricity sales to settle the debt.
Ghana has borrowed close to $5 billion from at least 41 Chinese credit facilities over the span of nearly 20 years.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) also projected that Ghana’s Debt to GDP Ratio will increase further to 98.7 per cent by the end of 2023.
This was captured in its Fiscal Outlook Report released at the Annual IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington DC, USA.
Ghana recently undertook a Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) to reduce the country’s debt stock.
According to media reports, the IMF in the report also forecast the Debt-to-GDP Ratio would reduce marginally to 92.8 per cent in 2024.
Launching the report, the Director of Fiscal Affairs at the IMF, Vitor Gaspar, advised the government of Ghana to ensure that fiscal policy is consistent with monetary policy to restore price and financial stability while supporting the most vulnerable.
Sompaonline.com/Nana Yaw Boamah