The Ministry of Finance has declared a moratorium on all foreign debt payments until an orderly restructuring of the impacted liabilities.
According to a statement issued by the Finance Ministry on Monday, December 19, the suspension would encompass payments on our Eurobonds, commercial term loans, and the majority of the country's bilateral debt.
The suspension, however, would not affect payments on Ghana's multilateral debt, new loans (whether multilateral or otherwise) committed after December 19, 2022, or debts relating to specific short-term trade facilities, according to the statement.
"We are also assessing some particular loans relating to projects with the highest socio-economic benefit for Ghana which may have to be removed. This suspension is a stopgap measure awaiting future agreements with all relevant parties.
On December 5, 2022, the government initiated the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme, which impacts the government's bonds listed on the Ghana Fixed Income Market (GFIM).
The Ministry of Finance (MoF) announced on Saturday that the Debt Exchange Programme will be extended until December 30, 2022. The debt swap was intended to address the country's economic difficulties.
The Debt Exchange Programme, which was slated to expire on Monday, December 19, 2022, has been extended to Friday, January 6, 2023, with a settlement date of Friday, January 6, 2023.
In a statement, the Ministry of Finance said that the extension follows the release of the Staff Level Agreement (SLA) between the government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on December 13, 2022.