By Daniel Bampoe
The Ranking Member on Parliament’s Economy and Development Committee, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has questioned the government’s fiscal management strategy, arguing that barely nine weeks after declaring the successful exit from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Extended Credit Facility (ECF) Programme, the Mahama administration has returned to Parliament seeking approval for almost US$1 billion in fresh borrowing.
According to him, the latest loan requests expose weaknesses in the government’s domestic revenue mobilisation strategy and raise concerns about the country’s long-term debt sustainability.
Speaking on the floor of Parliament during debate on a motion seeking approval for a number of international financing agreements, the Ofoase-Ayirebi Member of Parliament said the government should not assess each loan request in isolation but rather consider the cumulative amount of borrowing taking place within a short period after the conclusion of the IMF programme.
Beginning his remarks with the French expression “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose”—meaning “the more things change, the more they remain the same”—Mr. Oppong Nkrumah argued that despite the government’s repeated assurances that Ghana had successfully exited the IMF bailout programme, the country’s dependence on external borrowing appears to be continuing.
He recalled that on May 15, 2026, the government announced that Ghana had officially exited the IMF Extended Credit Facility programme, describing it at the time as a significant milestone in the country’s economic recovery.
However, he observed that just nine weeks later, Parliament was being asked to approve borrowing amounting to almost US$1 billion.
According to him, the package before Parliament includes approximately US$300 million for the education sector, about US$500 million for road infrastructure, roughly US$22 million for the Ministry of Finance, in addition to net borrowing estimated at about US$180 million already captured in the 2026 Budget Statement. Taken together, he argued, the various facilities amount to nearly US$1 billion in fresh financing.
Mr. Oppong Nkrumah clarified that the Minority was not opposed to the intended uses of the facilities. Having served both in government and opposition, he acknowledged that development financing often serves legitimate national purposes and stated that he was not questioning the sectors earmarked to benefit from the loans.
Instead, he argued that the real issue is why the government finds itself returning to the debt market so soon after the IMF programme ended. In his view, the answer lies in what he described as the failure of the government’s domestic revenue mobilisation measures.
The former Information Minister reminded Parliament that during deliberations on the 2026 Budget, government officials had assured the country that they possessed a superior fiscal strategy built around removing taxes while simultaneously increasing government revenue to 18 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
He recalled supporting that objective at the time, saying he had publicly indicated that the Minority would support any strategy capable of achieving that target.
However, Mr. Oppong Nkrumah argued that the government’s own fiscal reports now show that the promised target has not been achieved.
According to him, one official report places the revenue-to-GDP ratio at 15.7 per cent while another records it at 16 per cent, levels he said are effectively no better than what the current administration inherited.
“It is because the domestic resource mobilisation measures are not performing that nine weeks after the IMF left town, they have gone back to the debt markets and are asking Parliament to approve close to one billion dollars,” he stated.
While supporting the loan agreements, the Ranking Member cautioned government against allowing borrowing to undermine the debt sustainability.
He observed that many administrations begin their tenure with macroeconomic stability but eventually return to heavy borrowing when domestic revenue projections fail to materialise, creating renewed debt pressures if not carefully managed.
Mr. Oppong Nkrumah also criticised what he described as government spending priorities, arguing that resources were being directed towards quasi-fiscal operations rather than essential national development needs.
He referred to the Bank of Ghana’s 2025 financial statements, noting that Parliament was still awaiting the formal laying of the central bank’s audited accounts before the House, despite statutory requirements.
He further cited figures contained in the Bank’s financial reports, claiming that approximately GH¢16 billion had been spent on sterilisation operations while about GH¢9.6 billion had been incurred through gold-related losses.
According to him, those expenditures illustrate what he considers poor prioritisation of public resources.
He argued that state institutions are increasingly engaging in quasi-fiscal activities that divert resources away from pressing development priorities, thereby forcing government to resort to additional borrowing to finance programmes that could otherwise have been funded domestically.
As part of his contribution, the Minority MP proposed two key recommendations. First, he urged government to urgently strengthen its domestic revenue mobilisation strategy so that revenue performance improves and dependence on external borrowing is reduced.
Secondly, he called for a whole-of-government approach to expenditure management, arguing that coordinated prioritisation across ministries and public institutions would enable government to allocate limited resources more efficiently and reduce the need for additional debt.
Mr. Oppong Nkrumah concluded by reaffirming the Minority’s support for the loan agreements before Parliament while stressing that government must address the underlying weaknesses in revenue mobilisation and expenditure prioritisation if Ghana is to avoid renewed debt pressures in the years ahead.
