Going to the IMF was a painful decision I had to take – Akufo-Addo

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has opened up on what went into his decision to send Ghana to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The President on July 1, 2022, directed the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta to write to the IMF for support amid heightening hardships in the country due to an economic crisis.

Addressing the nation on Sunday, May 28, President Akufo-Addo said taking the decision to go for IMF support was very difficult for him.

“It was a painful decision for me to take because going to the IMF was not part of the economic transformation agenda I was pursuing.

“We were in extraordinary times and we took extraordinary measures,” President Akufo-Addo said.

After 10 months of negotiating a deal with the IMF, Ghana has secured a $3 billion Extended Credit Facility (ECF) for a period of 36 months.

According to President Akufo-Addo, this will provide some relief and ensure that infrastructure projects that stalled because of the economic crisis can resume.

“The fact that we have been able to negotiate such a deal sends a positive message that will underpin the hard work with which we will execute the programme.

“It will lead to the resumption of many infrastructural projects that have stalled,” the president said.

Meanwhile, President Akufo-Addo wants the Ghanaian people to be assured that his government will do everything to revive the economy and set it on a path of growth.

“I don’t think anyone imagined the effects will be so destructive and so deep…I owe it to you and to myself to go to any length to bring the economy to the health it was in before the pandemic,” H.E Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo stressed.