Bitcoin News and Finance Ghana Changes Mind on IMF Bailout Days After Residents Staged Protests Against Worsening Economic Situation Skip to main content

Ghana Changes Mind on IMF Bailout Days After Residents Staged Protests Against Worsening Economic Situation

The Ghanaian government has reportedly changed its mind and will now seek a financial rescue package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The decision comes just a few days after residents took to the streets to protest the spiraling inflation and growing economic hardships.

Ghana’s Growing Balance of Payments Deficit

After initially refusing to seek the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s support, the Ghanaian government has said it will now hold formal talks with the financial institution, a report has said. According to the report, the government’s decision followed a conversation between President Nana Akufo-Addo and the IMF’s managing director, Kristalina Georgieva.

As per the report, the government’s about-face comes after Ghana’s inflation rate, which topped 27.6% in May, as well as the deteriorating economic situation, helped spark street protests across the country in late June. Ghana’s apparent volte-face also came less than two months after the central bank hiked main interest rates by 200 basis points to 19%.

In addition to the spiraling inflation rate, Ghana has to contend with a negative balance of payments position which grew to $934.5 million in the first quarter of 2022. In the first quarter of 2021, the country’s balance of payments deficit was $429.9 million.

Decision Almost Inevitable

Meanwhile, the analyst quoted in the report praised Ghana’s decision, which they believe will help its economy. Commenting on the government’s decision to seek a bailout package from the IMF, Razia Khan of Standard Chartered said this was “positive news.” Another analyst, Leslie Dwight Mensah from the Accra-based Institute for Fiscal Studies, said:

This decision was almost inevitable, given the worsening economic situation and the threat of a balance of payments crisis due to the deteriorating external environment.

Mensah also hinted that talks with the IMF could potentially boost investors’ confidence in the country’s ability to meet its obligations. In the meantime, another report quotes an IMF spokesperson who pledges the institution’s readiness to help “Ghana to restore macroeconomics stability; safeguard debt sustainability, promote inclusive and sustainable growth and address the impact of the war in Ukraine and the lingering pandemic.”

Ghana, which is West Africa’s second largest economy and one of the continent’s biggest producers of gold, has been reeling from the effects of the global pandemic and is reportedly close to a debt crisis.

What are your thoughts on this story? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Custodial Lightning Network Service Attack Discovered by LN ‘Newbie’ — Hacker Strikes 6 LN Custodians

On September 18, a Redditor posted to the r/bitcoin forum and explained how he discovered a way to “attack [the] lightning Network’s custodial services.” The Reddit account dubbed “Reckless Satoshi” wanted to figure out if a “discrepancy between real routing fees and service’s transaction fee can be exploited for a profit.” The researcher disclosed that he wanted to see how large the damage could be and said “it is bad.” 6 Lightning Network Custodial Services Attacked, Researcher Discloses Findings to Offenders Prior to Public Disclosure A Redditor called Reckless Satoshi published a disclosure post on r/bitcoin this past Saturday and disclosed how he had found a vulnerability with routing fees and some of the Lightning Network’s custodial services. The research attack was done in good faith and after it was complete he disclosed the bugs to the offending services before publishing his findings. Reckless Satoshi used the Lightning Network (LN) attack on six different services incl...

Axie Infinity Down 40% Since Last Week’s Price High, Protocol Revenue Outshines Competitors

Last week, the game token leveraged within the Axie Infinity gaming universe skyrocketed to all-time highs, while other crypto markets remained extremely lackluster. During the last seven days, Axie Infinity’s platform token has dropped significantly in value shedding more than 12%. Meanwhile, the game platform’s smooth love potion token has slid over 8% over the last 24 hours. Axie Infinity Down More Than 40% Since All-Time High Not too long ago, the axie infinity (AXS) token was a topical conversation because it reached an all-time high on July 15. At the time, AXS managed to capture $28.93 per unit and since then it has shed 12.8% during the last seven days. The axie infinity (AXS) token is used within the blockchain-based game that involves battles between token-based creatures called “Axies.” AXS is used for the game’s governance system as well as other actions within the game. At the time of writing axie infinity (AXS) is exchanging hands for $16.70 per coin. AXS/USD on Ju...

Play-to-Earn Game From Polker (PKR) Exchange Listing – Endorsed by Akon

The Play-to-Earn NFT based Polker.Game ‘s native token $PKR has been officially listed on the popular centralized exchange BitMart. Polker.game has been in the spotlight recently as Akon, the American R&B superstar and record producer gave his official endorsement of polker stating that the “game is revolutionary” and that Polker is “hands down.. the best play to earn, NFT game in the space.”. With the BitMart listing and celebrity endorsement from Akon, Polker is perfectly positioned to become a major player in the Play-to-Earn league. Watch Akon’s Video Here What is Play-to-Earn? Although not a new concept, play-to-earn has become a trending term due to the popularity of the NFT game AXIE infinity. In the past, previous play-to-earn games have also achieved success – however, thanks to the huge amount of development in the blockchain space in recent years the gaming experience is now massively improved. Play-to-Earn games are essentially free to play and open to anyone and...

China to Crack Down on Copyright Infringement Through NFTs

Authorities in China are going after creators of digital collectibles based on other people’s works of art, the use of which was not authorized. The government offensive is part of a campaign to combat online copyright infringement and piracy with the participation of several departments. Regulators in China Move to Strengthen Copyright Supervision of Online Platforms The National Copyright Administration of China (NCAC) has recently launched a campaign against copyright infringement and piracy on the internet, together with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, and the State Internet Information Office of the People’s Republic. A major objective of the initiative is to improve copyright supervision of online businesses by investigating cases involving the sale and distribution of infringing products on short video, live broadcast and e-commerce platforms, and promptly dealing with infringing content, the agency announced in a press r...
Blogarama - Blog Directory