President John Dramani Mahama has reaffirmed his confidence that Ghana will successfully complete its $3 billion Extended Credit Facility (ECF) programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by April 2026, without seeking an extension.
Speaking at a reflection session with business leaders following the Kwahu Business Forum, Mahama emphasized his commitment to strict fiscal discipline and responsible economic management beyond the IMF programme.
“I can assure you that we will maintain fiscal discipline and prudence during the IMF programme, but our discipline will not end there. Even after we exit next year, my hope is that we will have implemented the programme so effectively that there will be no need for an extension beyond April 2026.”
He stressed that after Ghana completes the programme, his administration will continue managing government expenditure responsibly while creating space for private sector growth, ensuring economic sustainability.
Mahama also underscored the private sector’s critical role in Ghana’s long-term development and youth employment strategy, pledging to position businesses at the center of the country’s recovery efforts.
“If the private sector thrives, the economy thrives. If the private sector is happy, government is happy. It is the private sector that can absorb and employ the teeming youth graduating from all levels of our educational system.”
Highlighting the limitations of public sector employment, he pointed out that government workers, including chief executives and lower-ranking staff, number fewer than a million approximately 800,000 in a population of 33 million.
“Even if we doubled that number, we would still face a major youth unemployment challenge. The only sector that can adequately absorb the growing number of young people entering the workforce is the private sector”.
