Also, the administration since January 10, 2025, has received a total Treasury Bill (T-Bill) bids of GH₵89.7 billion.

In a post on X, the Minister explained that of this total, the government accepted GH₵59.5 billion—largely rollovers of inherited debt—while rejecting GH₵30.2 billion worth of bids.

“It is instructive to note that actual debt accumulation under the Mahama government is virtually zero,” Dr. Forson stated.

For the record,

total T-Bill bids received by the Mahama government since January 10, 2025, stand at GHS89.7 billion.

Of this amount, total T-Bill bids accepted—being rollovers of debt inherited by the Mahama government—stand at GHS59.5 billion, while total T-Bill bids…

— Cassiel Ato Forson(PhD) (@Cassielforson) March 1, 2025

He added that the administration’s prudent public debt management strategies have resulted in a sharp decline in the 91-day T-Bill rate from 28.34 per cent to 20.79 per cent within just 50 days.

This drop Dr. Forson noted reflects strong investor confidence in the Ghanaian economy under the current leadership.

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This forecast translates to an average weekly borrowing of GH₵3.9 billion, down from GH₵4.2 billion in the previous year.

Databank Research’s 2025 Ghana Market Outlook attributes the decline in short-term borrowing to enhanced access to alternative funding sources and a strategic shift toward long-term securities.

This realignment is part of Ghana’s broader economic recovery strategy and increased engagement with international financial markets, which provide the government with more sustainable financing options.

The report anticipates that the transition to long-term instruments will gain full momentum after the first quarter of 2025.

“In 2025, we foresee a notable moderation in the Treasury’s demand for money market funding, driven by improved access to alternative funding sources and a strategic pivot towards long-term securities. We expect the reduced demand to allow the Treasury some space to trim high T-bill yields,” the report noted.

It further stated: “With improving access to international funding and most macroeconomic indicators showing signs of sustained recovery, the government is likely to focus on longer-term financing options. However, this shift is expected to take place after the first quarter of 2025, as the Treasury’s refinancing needs may keep demand for short-term funding elevated while navigating maturities from the high uptake in the second half of 2024.”

The government’s efforts to balance short-term and long-term borrowing align with its goal of fostering economic stability and promoting sustainable growth.

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The drop came as UK 10-year borrowing costs surged to their highest level since the 2008 financial crisis when bank borrowing almost ground to a halt.

Economists have warned the rising costs could lead to further tax rises or cuts to spending plans as the government tries to meet its self-imposed borrowing target.

According to several media reports, a spokesperson for the Treasury said: “No one should be under any doubt that meeting the fiscal rules is non-negotiable and the government will have an iron grip on the public finances.”

It added that the chancellor would “leave no stone unturned in her determination to deliver economic growth and fight for working people”.

The BBC has contacted the Treasury for comment.

Earlier, the government said it would not say anything ahead of the official borrowing forecast from its independent forecaster due in March.

“I’m obviously not going to get ahead… it’s up to the OBR (Office for Budget Responsibility) to make their forecasts.”

“Having stability in the public finances is precursor to having economic stability and economic growth,” the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said.

Shadow chancellor Mel Stride claimed that the Chancellor’s significant spending and borrowing plans from the Budget are “making it more expensive for the government to borrow”.

“We should be building a more resilient economy, not raising taxes to pay for fiscal incompetence,” he said in a post on X.

The warning comes after the cost of borrowing over 30 years hit its highest level for 27 years on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the pound dropped by as much as 1.1% to $1.233 against the dollar, marking its lowest level since April last year.

The government generally spends more than it raises in taxes. To fill this gap it borrows money, but that has to be paid back – with interest.

One of the ways it can borrow money is by selling financial products called bonds.

Gabriel McKeown, head of macroeconomics at Sad Rabbit Investments, said the rise in borrowing costs “has effectively eviscerated Reeves’ fiscal headroom, threatening to derail Labour’s investment promises and potentially necessitate a painful re-calibration of spending plans.”

Globally, there has been a rise in the cost of government borrowing in recent months sparked by investor concerns that US President-elect Donald Trump’s plans to impose new tariffs on goods entering the US from Canada, Mexico and China would push up inflation.

The prospect of those policies is colliding with separate concerns about growing US debt and persistent inflation, which could also keep borrowing costs high. In the US, interest rates on 10-year government bonds also surged on Wednesday,in part reflecting new data on prices,before dropping back at mid-day to more than 4.7%, still the highest level since April.

As investors respond to changes in the US bond market, the effects are being felt globally, including in the UK.

Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell, said the UK rises were similar to those in the US.

“US Treasury 10-year yields have jumped to the highest level since April, whilst in the UK 10-year borrowing costs have soared to their highest levels since the financial crisis,” she said.

Adding: “It may be a global sell-off, but it creates a singular headache for the UK chancellor looking to spend more on public services without raising taxes again or breaking her self-imposed fiscal rules.”

Ms Hewson said that with less than two weeks before Donald Trump returns to the Oval Office, “uncertainty about his tariff plans are already rattling investor nerves.”

The official forecaster, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), will start the process of updating its forecast on government borrowing next month to be presented to parliament in late March.

According to him, Ghanaians have lost hope in the governance of the country as a result of the continuous mismanagement of the economy by the Akufo-Addo administration, through excess taxes and unreasonable borrowing.

Speaking to Kwadwo Jantuah on Nhyira FM’s KuroYiMuNsem Show, he reiterated the need for a change of government to restore the hopes of Ghanaians.

“Ghanaians are fed up with the gross incompetence and mismanagement of the country. It is time we give power to the NDC to restore that trust and confidence. We are the only party that can correct the mess of this administration and restore the hopes of Ghanaians. This government has borrowed a lot to the tune of Gh¢999 billion with nothing to show. These loans are left for the next government to pay,” Dr. Ato Forson stated.

He attributed the current hardships in the country to the high inflation, high interest rate, and high unemployment rate resulting from the economic mismanagement by the current administration.

He referred to recent data from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) revealing over 25% of Ghanaians who have gone through a day without food.

“Ghana has a high misery index of about 47%, which means that a lot of Ghanaians are living in poverty. In fact, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) in their current report said over 25% of Ghanaians went a day without food to eat. This is serious and tells you the extent of mismanagement under this government,” said the minority leader.

Dr. Ato Forson revealed that Ghana has the highest VAT in Africa at 21.9% and a reason, businessmen are not complying.

He promised the NDC government will reduce VAT to less than 20% and remove the COVID Levy in their first budget.

“One of the grossly incompetent economic management decisions of this NPP government is revealed by the introduction of sales tax and VAT together. This government has decoupled several taxes like the NHIL and GETFund which has resulted in a cascading effect. The NDC will recoup these taxes to stop the cascading effect. We will remove the COVID Levy and other unreasonable taxes placed on Ghanaians,” he said.

According to the auction results from the Bank of Ghana, the government raised GH¢5.825 billion from the sale of short-term instruments, surpassing its target of GH¢5.623 billion. All bids were accepted.

A staggering GH¢5.107 billion, about 87.67%, came from the 91-day bill. For the 182-day bill, GH¢560.07 million was tendered, while a little over GH¢157 million was offered for the 364-day bill.

Meanwhile, interest rates increased across the yield curve. Some analysts believe the government would have missed its target if interest rates had remained the same or decreased.

The yield on the 91-day bill rose by 26 basis points to 26.82%. The rate on the 182-day bill increased to 27.67%, up from 27.58% the previous week. The yield on the 364-day bill also shot up to 29.12%, compared with 28.97% the preceding week.

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Mahama highlighted the lack of transparency in the country’s debt management and announced that the next NDC administration would make the debt management department of the Finance Ministry an autonomous entity, tasked with publishing the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio on a quarterly basis.

He made these remarks during a gathering at Dodowa in the Shai-Osudoku constituency as part of his Greater Accra regional campaign on Monday.

“There is no transparency in our debt management. The only time we hear how much we owe as Ghanaians is when the Minister of Finance is reading the budget and tells us what our debt-to-GDP is. NDC is going to change that.

“We are going to make the debt management department of the Finance Ministry a separate autonomous department. It will be a Debt Management Authority and it will have a head who will be autonomous and he will publish every quarter what our debt-to-GDP numbers are.

“Aside from that, we will change parts of the Public Financial Management Act and put a clause there on how much money a Finance Minister can borrow. So, if we agree that we should not borrow more than 60% of GDP, then we will put it in the Public Financial Management Act so that no finance minister can come in future and borrow money as badly as he wants and leave a debt for the young people who are sitting here,” he stated.

Source: Adomonline

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According to its July-August 2024 Economic Outlook, it said the domestic component of the debt has increased by as much as GH¢32.7 billion or 12.7%, from GH¢257.3 billion to GH¢290.0 billion in the year to June 2024, whereas the external component has increased only marginally by US$0.9 billion or 0.3% from US$30.1 billion to US$31.0 billion.

The IEA pointed out that since the government currently lacks access to the international bond market, it is understandable that it is only borrowing from the domestic market.

Nonetheless, it advised that the borrowing is closely monitored and controlled, so that it does not get out of hand and land the country into another major debt crisis.

As of end of June 2024, Ghana’s public debt stood at GH¢742.0 billion. This represents a year-to-date increase of GH¢133.6 billion or 22.0%.

The debt in dollar terms was US$50.9 billion, lower than US$52.2 billion at the end of December 2023, as a result of the effect of the sharp increase in the cedi/dollar rate on the domestic component.

In Gross Domestic Product terms, the debt was 70.6% at the end of June 2024 compared to 72.3 % at the end of December 2023. This is due to the much higher nominal GDP in 2024 compared to 2023.

In the Economic Credit Facility programme, the public debt is projected at 82.5% of GDP for 2024 [IMF Executive Board’s Second Review of Ghana’s ECF, June 28, 2024].

IEA said the projected figure is surprisingly high since the envisaged debt restructuring and fiscal consolidation under the ECF are supposed to place the debt on a declining path, reaching what is regarded as a sustainable level of about 56% by 2028.

“It is not clear whether this sustainable target is still attainable”, it concluded.

Source: Joy Business

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Deputy Minister of Finance, Dr Alex Ampabeng discussed some measures to provide a clear roadmap out of the crisis.

“What we are doing with GRA, and actually I am leading that with the Ghana Revenue Authority, is to reform a taxpayer database. We want to clean it to the point where the less active ones, we are able to track individuals and their businesses with the help of Ghana card, with the help of digitization, with the help of the digital address systems, you’re able to mark up people’s businesses and incomes and therefore becomes easier with compliance. We are also looking at reviewing all the tax handles, all the tax policies.”

“We are reviewing all the tax handles to make sure they are less punitive, will create an environment that is business friendly from the tax front, and that FDI inflows will increase and Ghana will gain this position as we used to be. A number of taxes will be assessed. You’re going to look at which one of them has to be removed, which one has to be modified and which one has to be reintroduced.”

Dr Ampabeng also proposed a debt ceiling to limit the maximum amount of debt the government can incur.

“We want to have a debt ceiling. So as part of fiscal rules, the Minister even intended in the Mid-year budget to restore the 5% fiscal rule. Now we also want to have a very strong fiscal Council. And it’s something the minister has already worked on and I think is going to cabinet very soon that we want an independent fiscal council, the council that will be able to advise but crucially, be able to shoulder the workload because if you are having just about four or five people as we have now as an advisory council, their role will be different than when you have an independent fiscal council like we have the Congressional Budget Office.

“It is going to have a team of competent individuals who are able to stand pressures and the key we are putting is independence.”

Meanwhile, President of the Hoteliers Association of Ghana, Edward Ackah-Nyamike Jnr welcomed the measures but urged the government to ensure its effective implementation.

“It is quite worrying that the government is responding to the issues and challenges raised for a very long period. To also say we do hope that this is not just something to pull industries down only for the status quo to continue.”

“We are hoping that whatever we are planning to do with regard to realigning the tax regime, which we have complained. We are calling for consultation of taxes for the industry,” he said.
Even though the measures have received applause from some quarters, the Economist and Professor of Finance at the University of Ghana Business School, Prof Godfred Bokpin, wants the Government to be intentional about having a lean administration.

“Whilst the government is making a lot of plans about increasing our revenue to GDP ratio and we applaud that, very little is being done and demanded from citizens about expenditure efficiency. The overhaul of procurement is where the issue is. If you examine the data carefully, you will realise that even though historically, our tax revenue to GDP ratio has been low, it has not constrained the government from spending the way they have to spend.”

“The next government should adopt a lean government approach. It should not have more than 40 ministers. It should be less than that. We should merge some ministries, and collapse some agencies. Some development authorities we have established in the last eight years or so have not been enhancing our productivity. They are just a drain on the national affairs. So let’s progressively shrink governance cost.”

Source: Myjoyonline

This is the view of some international investors and Eurobond holders after government reached a deal on restructuring about $13.1 billion.

Ghana has over the past two years been prevented from going onto the international market to raise dollars from investors, due to rising debt levels, slow economic growth and low balance of payment account.

Government was shut out of that market after; it announced that it is working to restructure debts owed commercial creditors.

The Eurobond holders have also disclosed that, government is now undertaking some measures which will protect investors’ funds. It is expected that the conclusion of the debt restructuring will restore some market confidence.

Other financial observers have however warned that it will not be prudent for government to immediately rush to the capital market to raise funds in dollars considering the country’s debt levels.

This, they argue could have a negative impact on the economy since Ghana was first of all forced to go to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for bailout due to over borrowing.

End of debt restructuring

Eurobond holders are expected to forego about $4.7 billion owed them by the Government of Ghana.

This is part of agreement reached with the Bondholders in restructuring a $13.1 billion debt.

The term sheet covering the Eurobond deal, showed that the Bondholders will also provide a cash flow of $4.4 billon, during the period under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme.

The concessions are needed, according to the new deal to restore debt sustainability under the Fund Programme.

Government is also proposing two options, under the deal.

This is the P.A.R and Disco Option. According to the agreement, investors who take the Disco option will receive three new bond instruments.

However the P.A.R option will have up to 1.6 Billion cedis CAP.

At 20 years old, I was making more money than most people who were twice my age and though I didn’t expect my partner to make as much, I wanted someone who didn’t rely on me for financial support.

Unfortunately, everyone I met didn’t have money and as soon as they found out that I was financially well off, they’d start asking for money.

I have nothing against helping someone who is struggling financially. However, it becomes a problem when it’s a constant thing or if you’re asking for money to go and spend it with your friends. That was the norm in my life when I was dating guys my age.

They never asked for money to start a business or pay for a course. It was always to go clubbing or buy clothes. I got tired of the constant begging so I decided to date someone older who I thought wouldn’t ask me for money.

One of the benefits of dating a guy in his 30s was that I didn’t have to worry about his financial situation. Most guys at that age had stable jobs and made good money. So, I assumed Trevor was the same.

Trevor had been pursuing me for a while but I was hesitant because of our age difference. He was 32 and I was 21 which I thought would turn him off. However, he didn’t think it was a big deal.

“Can you guess how old I am?” I asked him while on a date.

“27.” He answered confidently.

I laughed and said, “21.”

He was in disbelief and stared at me for a minute before saying, “You’ve accomplished a lot for your age.”

“Thanks.”

The date went well and I felt optimistic about our relationship. However, I made the mistake of paying for our meal which probably opened the doors for Trevor to start asking me for money.

It wasn’t like he was broke. On the contrary, Trevor was one of the most financially stable guys I knew. He had his own place, a nice car and a well-paying job but for whatever reason, he thought it was okay to ask me for money.

On our way home, we stopped at the petrol station where he asked me to pay for his fuel. Since I was still in a blissful mood, I removed my card from my wallet and, with a big smile on my face, I swiped it.

A week later, he invited me to his place. I was excited because, for once, the guy I was dating had his own place.

“Could you bring me a few things from the supermarket?” He asked over the phone.

“Sure. What do you need?” I said even though I didn’t want to.

“I’ll text you.”

He proceeded to send me a whole grocery list that amounted to over Ksh 8,000. It wasn’t a lot of money for me but I felt like he was taking advantage of the situation. Nonetheless, I bought him the things he had requested and even added a few more things to show him that I was a good catch. The pick-me energy was on overdrive at that time.

I showed up to his house with bags of groceries and the man didn’t even have the decency to prepare anything to eat – not even boiled eggs or sausages which don’t need any kind of skill.

“What are we eating?” I asked after realizing that he wasn’t going to offer me anything.

“Oh, are you hungry? I just ate but you can order something.”

I was hungry so I ordered a large pizza and soda which he ate almost all of it. Still, I tried to look on the bright side. At least, he had his own place and despite the horrible experience, it felt good being in someone else’s house.

After finishing the pizza, he came closer to me and put his arm around me then pulled me in.

“What do you want to watch?” He asked.

I smiled and said, “Anything.”

He then scrolled through YouTube and said, “There’s nothing to watch.”

“Don’t you have Netflix?”

“I have an account but I haven’t paid for it.”

I knew what was coming so without being asked, I removed my ATM card and asked him for his account details. Once the account was activated, he put me back in his arms and we watched movies until late at night. I spent the night at his place then woke up the following day and went back to my place.

I didn’t hear from him for almost two weeks. When I finally swallowed my pride and contacted him, he claimed that he was busy with work. However, that didn’t stop him from asking for money. I sent him Ksh 4,000 and he promised to make time for me in the coming week.

It got to a point where our relationship became transactional. If I needed to spend time with him, he asked me for money. I didn’t feel loved genuinely and I was getting irritated by how Trevor was treating me. Finally, I called him out about his behaviour.

“Why do you always ask me for money whenever I call you?” I asked him while we were at his place.

“If the tables were reversed, wouldn’t you borrow money from me?” He asked.

“It’s not like you don’t have your own money.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Why do you do it?”

“Because I can. You can’t refuse to give me money so why wouldn’t I ask?”

I was shocked at his response. At least the guys I dated before used to ask for money because they didn’t have any. Trevor was simply taking advantage of my kindness.

I didn’t need another sign that he was the wrong one for me. I ended the relationship and went back to dating guys my own age. They might be broke but at least they didn’t use me the way Trevor did.

The government of Ghana released a press statement through the Ministry of Finance posted on the website of the Ministry but failed to address the issues bordering on conflict of interest which is a serious dealing that attracts severe punishment in other economies.

The Ministry of Finance is too simplistic about the explanations given especially when it was widely reported that the Attorney General of Ghana was not aware of the dealings.

The Ministry of Finance should take time to deal with the matter relating to conflict of interest.

The Securities and Exchange Commission should as a matter of public interest and securing the image of the government of Ghana and the Ministry of Finance should investigate the matter broadly and with dispatch.

The argument of the Ministry of Finance sought to explain to Ghanaians that the bond is actually a local bond that does not need Parliamentary approval.

This explanation should be subjected to the Ghana’s Public Borrowing Guidelines which was prepared taken into consideration legal requirement using the provisions of the 1992 Constitution, The Loans Act, the Public Procurement Act, Financial Administration Act and Risk Management principles.

Section 3.1.1 of the Ghana’s Public Borrowing Guidelines explain external debt as “external debt is defined on gross basis at any given point in time as disbursed and contractual liabilities of the central government to nonresidents to repay principal, with or without interest, or to pay interest, with or without principal.

Basically, external debt is therefore the amount owed to creditors/lenders which are non-resident of the country.

External borrowing sources are further segmented into four categories as Multilateral, Bilateral, Commercial and Private”.

It is clear that greater portion of the loan comes from private external source and by definition, it is external borrowing. Hence must comply with the approval requirements by Cabinet and Parliament.

Section 5.2 of Ghana’s Public Borrowing Guidelines explains the approval process within the various Departments at the Ministry of Finance.

The question is have they followed the approval requirements?

The Approval Stage “This stage begins from obtaining the Cabinet/Executive approval and ends at the Parliamentary approval through the following processes.

When both Cabinet and Parliament are in session, this stage should take a period of maximum five (5) weeks to complete.

Step V: Cabinet informs both MOFEP and the Sector Ministry of its approval or decision on the request submitted through the joint cabinet memorandum.

Further, in accordance with Article 181 of the 1992 Constitution of the Fourth Republic of Ghana and the Loans ACT of 1970 (ACT 335), which solely mandate the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning to borrow on behalf of the Republic of Ghana, Cabinet issues approval letter authorizng the Hon. Minister of Finance and Economic Planning to seek Parliamentary approval for the financing.

The Cabinet approval letter must indicate the project objectives, the financing terms and the decision of Cabinet on the matter”.

Another Question is whether the following have been complied with?

5.2.1 Documentations to Parliament These are the documents to be forwarded to Parliament for consideration:

i. Cabinet or an Executive Approval

ii. Parliamentary Memorandum

iii. A letter from DMD, MOFEP, indicating that (i) to (viii) under Necessary Preparatory Conditions have been satisfied. (At this stage, the final grant element could be determined).

iv. The Credit Agreement, as reviewed by Legal Affairs of MOFEP and/or in collaboration with AG’s office, reflecting the financing terms as evaluated and accepted by DMD.

v. A forwarding letter from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to the Clerk of Parliament.

vi. An approval from Public Procurement Board in case sole sourcing or the tender results in case of International Competitive Bidding (ICB)

vii. Copies of due diligence report (only upon request and where necessary)

viii. Prospectus for ICM and other necessary documentation.

SO WHAT IS MY UNDERSTANDING? Since the about 95% is indebted to non-resident creditor it is external borrowing. That external borrowing per the guideline has nothing to do with the currency in which it is issued.

Conclusion While the relevant regulatory bodies are required to do their work, the bond actually required to follow through the approval process.