Ghana's public debt experienced a significant decline of ¢14.2 billion between June 2023 and September 2023, reaching ¢567.3 billion ($51.0 billion), as per data released by the Bank of Ghana.
The total public debt now constitutes 66.4% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The reduction in public debt during this period can be attributed to marginal gains by the cedi and the suspension of borrowings on the international market, as revealed in the November 2023 Summary of Economic and Financial Data.
The report indicated that the debt stock, which was ¢581.5 billion in June 2023 (approximately 68.0% of GDP), saw fluctuations throughout the subsequent months, reaching ¢584.4 billion ($53.0 billion) at the end of August 2023.
The Central Bank's data also disclosed that the external component of the total public debt stood at $29.4 billion (¢326.7 billion) in September 2023, slightly lower than the $29.9 billion (¢328.6 billion) recorded in June 2023.
In terms of domestic debt, it stood at ¢240.6 billion in September 2023, comprising about 28.1% of GDP. This represents a reduction from ¢252.9 billion recorded in June 2023, constituting approximately 29.6% of GDP.
Notably, the report lacked data for the financial sector resolution debt and other liabilities, including the energy sector debt.
The fiscal deficit-to-GDP ratio stood at 3.0% in August 2023, showcasing the government's fiscal operations staying on target.
This marks a significant improvement from the 8.3% of GDP recorded in December 2022. The primary balance also stood at a deficit of 0.7% of GDP in August 2023.
Ghana took the unprecedented step of suspending interest payments on loans to external creditors in December 2022 amid economic challenges.
The country is currently in negotiations with creditors to facilitate the release of the second tranche of $600 million from the International Monetary Fund by December 2023.