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Ghana announces successful completion of Debt Restructuring
The Government of the Republic of Ghana is pleased to announce that Ghana is back on the international financial markets after successfully completing the transaction of restructuring $13 billion in Eurobonds today.
On June 24, the Ad Hoc Group of International Bondholders and the Republic of Ghana reached an agreement in principle for restructuring the outstanding Eurobonds.
The agreement was approved by the International Monetary Fund as compatible with the programme parameters and met the comparability of treatment requirements of the Official Creditor Committee for Ghana.
On September 5, with the backing of the Committee of Holders of the Republic of Ghana’s Eurobonds, the Republic of Ghana launched a consent solicitation for its proposal to all bondholders. Today, the transaction has been concluded, with over 90% of bondholders voting in favour of the deal.
The settlement and delivery of the new debt instruments are scheduled for October 9, 2024, after the World Bank longstop date on October 7, 2024. On this date, old bonds will be exchanged for new securities under the revised terms. On or before 30 October 2024, World Bank payments will be executed. More details on technical processes following the Issue Date, including related to the holding period, can be found here.
“Today, our economy has turned a corner. This landmark achievement ushers in a new phase of economic recovery, returning Ghana to a sustainable debt path and putting us back on the investor map. We’ve accomplished what everyone said was impossible – we decisively resolved Ghana’s debt overhang problem. This will allow Ghana to stabilise our finances and focus all our efforts on continuing the implementation of the ambitious reform program to improve the well-being of the Ghanaian people. We are thankful to our bondholders, the IMF and our official creditors for their support and collaborative engagement to arrive at this solution,” his Excellency President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, stated.
“Today’s completion of the restructuring will help Ghana restore debt sustainability, reducing the debt stock by $4.7 billion and providing cash flow relief of approximately $4.4 billion in the next two years. The deal is already positively influencing our macro-financial situation. The increasing market confidence in Ghana and our economic trajectory has significantly reduced the inflation rate. Our growth projections are also more positive – Q2 of 2024 saw the highest quarterly GDP growth recorded in the past five years, at 6.9%. Our government takes pride in this progress and remains committed to advancing our reform agenda and attracting new investment to foster growth and job creation,” Mohammed Amin Adam, Minister for Finance and Economic Planning of Ghana, said.
The Government further extended sincere gratitude to the Steering Committee of the Ad Hoc Creditor Committee of International Bondholders and their advisors, Rothschild & Co and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, as well as the Steering Committee of the Creditor Committee of Regional Bondholders and their advisors, Renaissance Capital Africa, for their productive and consistent engagement throughout the process.
They added, “We thank our advisors Lazard Frères and Hogan Lovells, acting respectively as financial and legal advisors, and Algest, acting as a strategic advisor, for supporting the Republic of Ghana during this debt restructuring.”
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Afenyo Markin criticises Police over handling of Abronye’s case
The Minority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo Markin has raised concerns about the handling of the arrest and detention of Bono Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Kwame Baffoe, also known as Abronye.
According to him, the police invited Abronye on Monday, September 8, and he honoured the invitation with his lawyers.
He said Abronye submitted himself to interrogation but, within an hour, was taken into the custody of the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB).
The Minority Leader questioned why the police, who were investigating the case and had their own holding cells, decided to send someone being investigated for a misdemeanor to the NIB.
He intimated that checks confirmed that the NIB was not investigating or interrogating Abronye, but had only kept him because the police requested it.
He wondered whether the move was meant to punish Abronye, stressing that the police detained him the whole of Monday night and Tuesday morning, before presenting him to court on 9th September.
The Minority Leader added that in court, the police asked for Abronye to be remanded to allow further investigations, and the judge granted the request.
He however described it as unfortunate that the police handcuffed Abronye when he was leaving the court.
By: Jacob Aggrey
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Power Is like an ice block, it melts from day one – Afenyo-Markin warns
The Minority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has urged political leaders to learn from past mistakes and handle power with caution.
Speaking at the Accra Circuit Court for Abronye DC proceedings, Afenyo-Markin admitted that governments in the past, including his own side, had made mistakes and were not perfect.
He warned that if such mistakes were repeated, the country could be heading in the wrong direction.
He pointed to the removal of a former Chief Justice as an example, saying a report was prepared even before a committee hearing was completed.
According to him, such actions make it difficult to control extremists and hardliners in Ghana’s politics.
The Minority Leader stressed that power is temporary and must be exercised responsibly.
“Power is like an ice block, When it’s given to you, it starts to melt from the very day,” he noted.
By: Jacob Aggrey
