The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has indicated that the sharp appreciation of the Ghanaian cedi against the US dollar in the first half of 2025 could prompt a revision of some programme targets under its current arrangement with Ghana.
Speaking at a press conference in Washington, D.C., IMF Director of Communications Julie Kozack stated that future programme reviews would assess Ghana’s evolving macroeconomic and financial conditions, including the significant movement in the exchange rate.
“As we look at the programme, we look at all of these developments, including, of course, developments in the exchange rate,” she noted in response to a question from JOYBUSINESS.
She added that future reviews will incorporate these developments to ensure that the programme’s targets and objectives remain realistic and achievable.
IMF Programme Objectives
Ghana’s economic reform agenda, supported by the IMF’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF), focuses on three core objectives: restoring macroeconomic stability, ensuring debt sustainability, and laying the foundation for higher and more inclusive growth.
A key target under the programme is to reduce Ghana’s debt-to-GDP ratio to 55% by the end of 2028.
However, recent data from the Bank of Ghana suggests the country is ahead of schedule. As of the end of April 2025, Ghana’s debt-to-GDP ratio had already declined to 55%, largely due to the cedi’s sharp appreciation against the dollar.
Commercial bank data shows that the cedi has appreciated by more than 40% since the beginning of the year, with the current exchange rate at GH¢10.26 to the dollar.
President John Mahama, speaking at the African Development Bank meetings in Côte d’Ivoire, disclosed that Ghana’s total debt stock has been reduced by GH¢150 billion as a result of the cedi’s performance.
In a separate engagement, the President estimated the real exchange rate value of the cedi to be within the range of GH¢10 to GH¢12 per dollar.
Reserves Target Met
Ghana has also exceeded the IMF’s target for gross international reserves. As of April 2025, the country’s reserves stood at GH¢10.6 billion, equivalent to 4.7 months of import cover — significantly above the programme’s expectations at this stage.
IMF Board Meeting Scheduled
Julie Kozack also confirmed that the IMF Executive Board is expected to meet in the first week of July 2025 to consider Ghana’s fourth review under the ECF arrangement.
She said that, subject to Board approval, “Ghana would be scheduled to receive about US$370 million, bringing total support under the Extended Credit Facility to US$2.4 billion since May 2023.”
President Mahama recently announced that Ghana will not seek an extension of the programme beyond its scheduled completion in May 2026.
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