The Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Ghana (BoG) have teamed up to establish a financial monitoring desk at the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) to enforce financial discipline and solve large annual losses. Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta confirmed the establishment of this monitoring desk during a recent interview.
COCOBOD, which oversees cocoa production and exports in Ghana, has been grappling with substantial annual losses, identified as a major threat to the sector and the government’s fiscal efforts by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The primary objective of this new oversight initiative is to ensure that COCOBOD’s expenditure is closely monitored. Specifically, the purchase of fertilizers and the construction of cocoa roads will be strictly scrutinized to ensure they remain within budget limits.
Minister Ken Ofori-Atta stated, “Both the Governor of the Central Bank and the Minister of Finance – myself, will now be on the Board, and we are also setting up a desk at the Finance Ministry that will interact with the finance division of COCOBOD to make sure the issues of fertilizers and cocoa roads are all brought into an ambit of discipline. This begins to tell you how we are addressing the issue of expenditure.”
Simultaneously, Finance Minister Ofori-Atta is currently in London, engaged in negotiations with external creditors to secure their agreement on a proposed 40 per cent haircut in the country’s $10 billion debt restructuring. A successful negotiation will pave the way for the release of the second International Monetary Fund (IMF) tranche. Ofori-Atta expressed optimism that a deal could be reached before the end of the year, surprising expectations that the process would extend into the following year.
Meanwhile, President Nana Akufo-Addo has expressed optimism about the Ghanaian economy’s recovery, despite the shocks experienced during his administration. He pointed to declining inflation as a key driver, projecting a positive economic outlook. The President remains confident in achieving a single-digit inflation target before his tenure in office ends in 2024.
