Akufo-Addo to Germany: Request Chinese assistance with Ghana’s debt restructuring.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo urged Germany on Friday to “encourage” China, an ad hoc member of the Paris Club, to help Ghana with its debt restructuring efforts.

He stressed the importance of the Paris Club quickly establishing a creditors committee, with the participation of other official creditors, to support efforts to restore Ghana’s economic growth.

President Akufo-Addo made the call when German Finance Minister Christian Lindner paid him a visit at Accra’s Jubilee House.

Linden, who was leading a delegation from his country, met with the President in order to strengthen bilateral relations and economic ties between the two countries. President Akufo-Addo told the minister that his government’s main priority was to complete negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), particularly at the Board Level, and reach an agreement with the Bretton Woods institution by mid-March this year.

Akufo-Addo statement

“Our main concern right now is the arrangements that we are in the process of concluding with the IMF…and the specific assistance that will be useful to us and help us fast-track the process.

“Our target is that by the middle of March, we should be before the Board for the full agreement. We’ve already taken an important step forward by reaching a staff-level agreement with the IMF, and we’re now looking to go the distance. We hope to have it completed by the middle of March.

“One of the steps toward that has been the domestic debt exchange program that we are on, which fortunately, despite several difficulties, is now nearly completed,” he said.

Emphasis on other creditors

However, President Akufo-Addo emphasized the importance of other creditors supporting his government’s efforts to restructure the country’s external and domestic debts in order for the IMF deal to be completed quickly.

“We now have our relations with the Paris club and the common framework, and we are looking for as quickly as possible a creditor committee to be established, so we will have the body with whom we can engage to bring those discussions as quickly as possible.

Our relationship with China

“We have positive relations with China. We would appreciate it if you could encourage China to participate in these programs as soon as possible… “A very important consideration for us is the financial stability fund that has been promised to us as one of the key outcomes of these negotiations, and once again, your voice in attempting to bring that into being is something that we would very much appreciate,” President Akufo-Addo told Finance Minister Lindner.

President Akufo-Addo thanked the German government for its assistance to Ghana in overcoming its current economic difficulties. Akufo-Addo said the German government had proven to be a reliable ally, and Ghana would continue to rely on it as a “privileged partner” as it seeks a bailout from the IMF.

Last December, the IMF reached a Staff-Level Agreement with Ghana on a $3 billion, three-year Extended Credit Facility to alleviate the country’s debt distress. The package’s approval is conditional on Ghana restructuring its domestic and external debts comprehensively.

In further discussions with the German delegation, President Akufo-Addo praised the German government for its support of peace efforts in West Africa. He was particularly concerned about the Sahel region’s spillover of terrorism and the instability posed by cross-border terrorism in West Africa.

Burkinabe seeking refuge in Ghana

Approximately 4000 Burkinabe citizens are currently seeking refuge in Ghana following attacks in Burkina Faso by suspected terrorists and militants. “We’re right in the crossfire.

Burkina Faso is our northern neighbor, and with the jihadist threat there, I believe 4000 young people from Burkina Faso have come to take refuge here in Ghana in the last six weeks, and those are the ones that the Refugee Board can officially count.

“And usually, in these matters, you have to add another third of the numbers coming in, unaccounted for, so we are talking about substantial numbers of people who are already coming southwards as a result of the difficulties in Burkina Faso to Ghana.

“So we have a direct important strategic interest in doing whatever we can to put an end to this insurgency and help stabilize the government in Burkina Faso, and in that exercise you have been very useful and helpful to us,” he said.

Mr Lindner, for his part, stated that the German government would do everything possible to assist West Africa in dealing with its problems.

“We know that the stability and security in this region of Africa are critical for our security in Europe, and we see economic challenges in Ghana, but also opportunities for bilateral trade, which is why we’re here,” he said.

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