Gov’t, World Bank conclude rationalization of social intervention programmes

The Government, in partnership with the World Bank, has successfully concluded efforts to rationalize several social intervention programs, including the Free Senior High School (SHS) initiative.

The move comes in response to concerns raised by the country’s development partners regarding increasing expenditure on these programmes, and also aims to address the growing national debt while creating fiscal space.

The rationalization process involved a review of the funding allocated to these social programmes, seeking greater efficiency in resource allocation. Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta provided insights into this initiative, highlighting its importance for meeting structural benchmarks necessary for approval by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Mr Ofori-Atta explained that this review is a critical step to enable the World Bank to disburse approximately $500 million under the IMF program for Ghana by December 2023.

It is reported that around 17 programmes have been considered in the process and will be integrated into the 2024 budget with specific details revealed in the coming days.

The Finance Minister underscored the timeliness of these funds from the World Bank, emphasizing the government’s commitment to fulfilling all benchmarks to place the economy firmly on a path to recovery.

Additionally, he mentioned that the Ghana Financial Stabilization Fund will receive around $250 million from the World Bank to support local financial institutions, particularly those affected by the Domestic Debt Exchange Program.

These funding injections are expected to bolster the recapitalization of banks and provide much-needed support, particularly for local banks facing challenges resulting from the DDEP.

Source: Norvanreports