According to the International Monetary Fund, Ghana is set to be the fastest-growing economy in the world this year. The lender’s growth forecast of 8.8 percent for the producer of cocoa, gold and oil dwarfs the 6.6 percent median. The IMF’s projection in its latest World Economic Outlook published, Tuesday has however been viewed as “way too generous” by some analysts.
In 2017, Ghana’s President, Nana Akufo-Addo announced that the country would not extend its agreement which ended in April 2018, in a move to curb dependence on foreign aid. The government subsequently, submitted its first budget without an IMF programme while increasing the volume of its bond issuances on the international debt market recently.
In less than three years, Ghana seems to be doing things right. In 2018, her ‘Ease of doing Business’ rating leapt to 114 from 120 in 2017 of the 190 countries compared. The steady improvement since 2010 averaged 90.55 percent from its rating that year which stood at 60.
Purchasing Managers Index, Corruption rank and even Internet speed have showed commendable improvements.
The nations sovereign wealth bond in 2018 peaked at $8 billion and in 2019, it had multiplied to $21 billion according to Ghana’s Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah. Nkrumah added that such investor confidence is commendable as Ghana is exiting the International Monetary Funds (IMF)’s four-year Extended Credit Facility programme.
So, African countries can do without debts, grants and aid from international lenders with improved regulatory supervision and better service delivery. Investors’ confidence soars when the environment is conducive with the necessary infrastructure.
Three generations after Ghana’s quiet exodus, it has become a home worth going.
