Ghana has signed a €87.7m debt relief agreement with France under the Official Credit Committee (OCC) arrangement.The Minister of Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, signed the agreement on behalf of Ghana on Friday, while Mr William Ross, Co-Chair, OCC, signed on behalf of France.The debt agreement provides a 100 per cent debt service reduction on the interest rate and extension of maturity on the country's debt and made France the first bilateral creditor to sign such an agreement after two years of negotiations.Speaking after the signing of the agreement, Dr Forson thanked Paris Club, OCC, legal and financial advisors for their collaborative work and efforts in ensuring that bilateral agreement was signed.He said that the country was showing signs of economic recovery, which reflected in the decline in inflation rate, improvement in external reserves, as well as the fiscal economy."Inflation that was once at 54.1 per cent has now come down to 13.7 per cent.
We are seeing growth bounded to about five-year high.
We are seeing particularly reserves of the external position improving to about four months of import cover and primary surplus is at 1.1 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP)," Dr Forson stated.He pledged the commitment of the government to ensure the stability of the economy, invest adequately in the various sectors of the economy, particularly the health, education, agriculture, and infrastructure sectors, and deepen Ghana's mutual beneficial corporation with France.Mr Ross, in his remarks, expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Finance, led by Dr Forson, for the dedication shown in working to get the debt agreement signed.He noted that due to the complex nature of Ghana's debt composition and treatment, there was a series of professional and efficient engagement with multiple stakeholders, as well as the building of trust among official bilateral and international creditors, leading to the signing of the debt agreement between France and Ghana."If you look at what we have done for Ghana, it is shorter than what we did for Zambia, but we have continued to improve in the case of Ethiopia… you have been very impressive because you have many people and institutions to engage with," Mr Ross said.For his part, the French Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Jules Armand Aniambossou, said the signing of the debt agreement was a reflection of the long-standing difficult journey that the two countries had walked and how they had navigated those difficult journey over the years."When I came to this country more than two years ago, the country was facing some difficulties.
But when your friend or your family is facing difficulties, you have to showcase that you will not just say I am sorry but to take some key actions," he said. BY BENJAMIN ARCTON-TETTE
