IMF programme has taught us self-reliance – Kwaku Kwarteng

A Deputy Finance Minister nominee, Kwaku Kwarteng, has noted that the three-year International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout programme, has taught the country a lesson that such programmes will not automatically lead to development.

He explained that the programme has emboldened the country to take hold of its economic capabilities to be elf-reliant instead of relying on IMF for a bailout.

“…I think as a country we can look on the IMF programme as something to learn from, that the presence of the IMF will not necessarily give us the economic development that we want. And so the programme, if not for anything at all, has been useful in teaching us the lesson that as a country we have to do more ourselves and not assume that the presence of development partners in our country would lead to the development that we want.”

Mr. Kwarteng,who is also the Member of Parliament for the Obuasi West Constituency, said this when he appeared before the Appointments Committee of Parliament on Tuesday to be vetted.

Ghana under the leadership of John Dramani Mahama entered a three year Extended Credit Facility programme with the IMF because of huge debts and an ailing economy, and the need for fiscal discipline and policy credibility.

The programme, which is currently in its final stages, saw Ghana receive about US$918 million within the period.

According to Mr. Kwarteng, most of the IMF parameters had deteriorated over the period.

“As a country, we went into the programme because our debts had become unsustainable and therefore the cost of credit to our country was becoming too much and as the then President said, we were going there for policy credibility so that investors will trust our policies and if they were lending to us, they will do that at more affordable rates. If the parameters are anything to go by, then from the time we engaged in the programme till now, then many of the indicators have deteriorated,” he added.

NDC govt missed all IMF targets in 2016- Nana Addo

President Nana Akufo-Addo during his first state of the nation address to Parliament in February this year, revealed that Ghana missed nearly all targets set for the country under  the International Monetary Fund(IMF) Extended Credit Facility program of US$918 million.

According to him, government missed the targets due to financial and fiscal indiscipline in the management of public funds. President Akufo-Addo blamed the erstwhile John Mahama administration for  expending beyond the budget, after it experienced a similar budget overrun in the 2012 election year.

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By: Godwin A. Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin