The recent discovery of supposed massaged economic figures by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) could lead to sanctions against the Government of Ghana.

A similar incident was said to have occurred in 2000 earning government some punishment in 2001.

Economic analysts have hinted that the supposed massaging of economic figures was deliberate and intended to hide the true state of affairs of the country from the Bretton- Woods and also to cover up the gravity of the rot in Ghana’s economy.

On Wednesday, Sanjeev Gupta, Deputy Director, Fiscal Affairs Department of IMF, said Ghana’s debt profile was over 70 percent of GDP and not 55 percent as claimed by the Bank of Ghana (BoG).

“First of all, the debt-to-GDP ratio in Ghana is 71 percent, not 60 percent so it is much higher than you mentioned.”

Ghana has been caught in huge debt repayment three times than the proceeds from oil revenue, a situation the IMF said was unsustainable.

An IMF delegation, led by Joël Toujas-Bernaté, was in the country to collect information before the actual negotiations during the annual meetings.

Seth Terkper, Minister of Finance, is leading a government delegation to the International Monetary Fund (IMF)/World Bank Annual Meetings.

The team includes Dr Kofi Wampah, Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Chairman of the Finance Committee of Parliament and officials from the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Ghana.

The delegation attended the Commonwealth Finance Ministers Meeting, which precedes the IMF meetings, as well as other meetings with the Vice President of the World Bank and the G24 Ministerial Meetings.

Ghana experienced financial crisis in late 2000. It recorded a rapidly depreciating currency, sharply rising inflation, burgeoning public debt and a substantial depletion of foreign exchange reserves.

The primary cause was loss of control over public expenditure and government borrowing, especially in the second half of the year before the presidential elections.

The fiscal deficit in cash terms reached 9.7 percent of GDP for the year. Owing to shortfalls in donor disbursements, the deficit was financed almost entirely by domestic borrowing.

The result was a destabilization of the economy: 40 percent growth in broad money, a 50 percent depreciation of the cedi, and a tripling of the inflation rate to over 40 percent at end- 2000. The domestic government debt stock rose to almost 29 percent of GDP, and official reserves fell to only three weeks of imports.

A breakdown in expenditure management and control systems during 2000 also led to a build-up in new domestic arrears in addition to cash expenditure overruns.

The full extent of these arrears remains to be verified, but it’s estimated at 1.4 percent of GDP. Delays in aid inflows further complicated the payment of government obligations and led to the creation of external payment arrears on debt service amounting to US$89 million by end-2000. Ghana’s public and publicly guaranteed external debt stood at US$5.9 billion (about 119 percent of GDP) at end-2000.

The finances of several key parastatals deteriorated along with those of the central government. Failure to adjust petroleum prices fully for rising crude oil costs and a depreciating currency left the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) with a total short-term debt of 2.5 trillion (9 percent of GDP) at end-2000.

Almost half of this was debt to domestic banks, in particular to Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB), posing a major risk to the solvency of the bank.

Similarly, electricity and water rates were kept artificially low throughout 2000, leaving the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Volta River Authority (VRA), the electricity generator and the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) with sizeable additional debts.www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=330108

What a pity our noisy neighbor

After all d hype abt Ghana's economy... So this how they arrive at thier 'our economy is better than yours' status abi? God don catch dem

We really need to start sending our used cloths and shoes to the ghanian senators. And later to the people

Eiya i pity them,i hope their economy improve,but them lyk to they make mouth

mondob2k:
After all d hype abt Ghana's economy... So this how they arrive at thier 'our economy is better than yours' status abi? God don catch dem

why do you guys find joy in the misery of others? It's pathetic.

May the good lord lead Ghana out of debt like he led isreal out of Egypt.

Hope this won't be another E - war thread.

We have our own problem coming with the prices of oil coming down in the international market due to international politics and we've not diversified the economy yet.

Let's hope and pray that our economic team have plans to reduce the effect on the population.

IMF should lock up Nigeria in Prison if they penalize Ghana.. we have the most distorted economy in the world, GDP figures, Salaries, Census, Elections everything

masseratti:
why do you guys find joy in the misery of others? It's pathetic.

May the good lord lead Ghana out of debt like he led isreal out of Egypt.

you are wasting your time praying for people that are comfortable with their statusquo. They are very ok with the state of their country, they don't need your prayers.

Their economy is cursed.

A debt of 71% of GDP is very bad. Factoring in compound interest, it is frightening. The painfull thing is that African leaders borrow to put in their pocket.

[quote author=Sparrow13 post=27129328][/quote]

GEJ's d1ck must taste so good to u boy

masseratti:
why do you guys find joy in the misery of others? It's pathetic.

May the good lord lead Ghana out of debt like he led isreal out of Egypt.

I am not 'finding joy'in thier misery. If they r sick why hide it by manipulating figures? how will help come? now instead of help, they are getting sanctions..

must Ghana followed Nigeria 4 everything. continue to the measure your shoulder with us instead of a country like Cameroon, Ethiopia and like, till u collapse ur economy finish. that weed position never do una.

Hmmm!!! Eleyi gidigan ooh!!!

Nigeria(GEJ) should learn from this because our situation right now is similar to when Ghana started her borrowing. "Ghana experienced financial crisis in late 2000. It recorded a rapidly depreciating currency, sharply rising inflation,
burgeoning public debt and a substantial depletion of foreign exchange reserves.
The primary cause was loss of control over public expenditure and government borrowing, especially in the second
half of the year before the presidential elections." . Negative examples can be learned from too. Borrowing is not always the answer. There are other ingenious ways to get what you want. Overdoing it will enslave the next generation.

mondob2k:


I am not 'finding joy'in thier misery. If they r sick why hide it by manipulating figures? how will help come? now instead of help, they are getting sanctions..

A Chartered Economist has called for an
unqualified apology from the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) over the controversy it has
sparked regarding the level of Ghana’s public
debt stock.
The Bretton Woods institution through Sanjeev
Gupta, the Deputy Director of IMF's Fiscal
Affairs Department, disputed Bank of Ghana’s
figure regarding the country's debt-to-GDP ratio,
stressing at a press conference ahead of the
Annual Meetings that it is 71 per cent instead of
60 per cent.
“First of all, the debt-to-GDP ratio in Ghana is 71
percent, not 60 percent so it is much higher than
you mentioned,” Mr Gupta told a journalist last
week.
But IMF explained on its website that the figure
is a projection into 2015 and not the current one
of 56 per cent.
“The best thing they need to do is to apologise
to the people of Ghana,” Dr John Gatsi said on
TV3’s Midday Live on Monday, October 13.


http://mobile.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=330169

Ghanians what do u hav to say.

Jonathannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

Later on, Obama and his cohorts would claim that Ghana is better than Nigeria.

Until US President Ogbeni Obama, Apologizes to GEJ and Nigerians about his senseless statement, I and my fellow Nigerians wouldn't forgive him.

Pricelesss:
Later on, Obama and his cohorts would claim that Ghana is better than Nigeria.

Until US President Ogbeni Obama, Apologizes to GEJ and Nigerians about his senseless statement, I and my fellow Nigerians wouldn't forgive him.

Your forgiveness isn't required

Most European countries and America have debt-to-GDP ratio that approaches 100%. Others such as Greece and Japan are approaching 200%. But I understand that this is about cooking numbers.

masseratti:
why do you guys find joy in the misery of others? It's pathetic.

May the good lord lead Ghana out of debt like he led isreal out of Egypt.

Religion is the reason why some other people are in debt.... Remember your pastors who like saying "borrow money in faith"?

God never asks people to borrow things, leave Him out of it and simply pay your debts.

voltron:
IMF should lock up Nigeria in Prison if they penalize Ghana.. we have the most distorted economy in the world, GDP figures, Salaries, Census, Elections everything

is high time u stop waching ur radio and listening to ur tv...