The World Bank Group has asserted that Ghana’s economy has become increasingly vulnerable due to external shocks, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
In a presentation marking the 2024 End Poverty Day in Accra, the Bank’s economic team, led by Ms. Tamoya Annika Lois Christie, emphasized that supporting Ghana’s economic stability and poverty reduction is a top priority.
Ms. Christie explained that the Russian-Ukraine war contributed to Ghana’s economic strain by causing abnormally high international prices, which drove global inflation and worsened Ghana’s economic situation.
She noted that in response to these shocks, advanced countries raised their interest rates, which led to a dramatic rise in global inflation, affecting GDP growth and exchange rates in 2022.
However, she attributed the sustained decline in Ghana’s GDP growth to issues predating these crises, including persistent macroeconomic and fiscal instability from as far back as 2007.
Ms. Christie pointed out that factors such as fiscal instability—exacerbated by central government overspending after the discovery of oil—have burdened Ghana with rising public debt, both domestically and internationally.
She noted that despite Ghana’s dramatic GDP growth in 2019, high levels of government spending left the country more vulnerable to economic shocks, resulting in severe impacts on poverty levels.
The economic team commended the government’s comprehensive debt restructuring negotiations with the IMF, aimed at addressing internal and external debts, and praised initiatives for growth-enhancing structural reforms to correct economic imbalances and foster growth.
Ms. Christie highlighted the World Bank’s commitment to long-term structural reforms to help restore fiscal sustainability, support private sector development, and strengthen social and climate resilience.
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She urged the government to implement necessary measures, including innovative solutions, to boost economic recovery and reduce poverty.
The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, celebrated annually on October 17, was established by the United Nations in 1992.
This year’s theme, “Delivering with Ambition,” underscores the urgency of eradicating poverty, aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 1.
According to the Acting Country Manager of the World Bank, Ms. Eunice Ackwerh, the day’s significance is heightened by the Bank’s commitment to supporting low- and middle-income countries with initiatives aimed at alleviating poverty.
