Cedi's Surge Has Reduced Ghana's Debt by GHS150bn - Mahama

Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire - 28 May, 2025 - President John Dramani Mahama has attributed a significant reduction in Ghana's total debt burden to the recent strengthening of the Ghanaian cedi.

Speaking at the Annual Meetings in Abidjan on May 27, Mahama revealed that the country's debt has decreased by nearly GHS150 billion over the past five months, largely due to the cedi's rebound against major foreign currencies.

“One of the push factors for the debt is the value of the local currency. Our debt continued to multiply because the cedi continued to grow weaker and so you needed more cedis. Because our public debt is stated in cedis, the weaker the cedi becomes against foreign currencies, the higher it pushes up your debt,” Mahama said.

Mahama explained that the cedi's depreciation in previous years had led to an increase in the debt stock, as more local currency was required to settle debts denominated in foreign currencies. 

However, he credited recent policy measures for stabilizing the economy and yielding significant fiscal relief.

With the cedi's continued strengthening, Mahama expressed optimism that Ghana could meet its debt sustainability target of 55-58% of GDP ahead of schedule, potentially by the end of the year, thereby freeing up fiscal space for investments in productive sectors of the economy.

“Fortunately, some measures we put in place have recently begun to show results, and the cedi has been strengthening. So we’ve reduced our total debt over the last five months by almost GHS150 billion, which is very significant,” he stated.

“If that trajectory continues, the target of reaching 55% to 58% debt sustainability by 2028 will be reached by the end of this year. That means it gives us fiscal space to invest in the most productive sectors of the economy,” he added.

Source: Lead News Online