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China's government says it will assist Ghana's government in restructuring the country's US$1.7 billion debt to the Asian behemoth.
Chinese Finance Minister Liu Kun relayed the commitment to Ghana's Finance Minister, Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta, who led a delegation to Beijing to seek debt relief.
This information is courtesy of Class FM online, a Ghanaian news publication.
“China believes in promoting debt sustainability and sustainable development,” Mr. Liu said, adding: “We know that these are short-term challenges which we, as responsible creditors, remain committed to resolving”. The long-standing and prosperous relationship between Ghana and China imposes on us, a responsibility to help.”
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Ghana is seeking debt relief and restructuring as a condition for the International Monetary Fund's Board of Governors to accept a US$3 billion extended credit line for the cocoa producer.
The US$1.7 billion owed to China is part of the US$5 billion owed to Ghana's bilateral partners, which includes the Paris Club. Ghana has already completed the restructuring of its internal debt.
US$3bn bailout: ‘Give Ghana necessary financing assurances as soon as possible’ – IMF tells China, Paris Club.
The IMF has encouraged Ghana's creditors to move quickly to provide the funding assurances required so that the Bretton Woods institution's Board of Directors can approve the $3 billion loan to restore economic stability to the country.
“We're calling on bilateral creditors to support Ghana's effort to restore debt sustainability, form an official creditor committee, and deliver the necessary financing assurances as soon as possible”, the Fund’s communications director Julie Kozack told journalists at a news briefing in Washington DC.
The vice president of the United States Kamala Harris began her tour in Africa from Ghana, where she met with the president of the country, Nana Akufo-Addo.
Harris arrived in Accra on the first leg of a three-nation African tour, the latest in a string of visits by senior US officials as Washington strives to offset rising Chinese and Russian influence on the region, and right off the bat she disclosed that the United States will provide $139 million to Ghana and four other West African countries to help them deal with violent extremism and instability.